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http://www.archive.org/details/americanlegionwaOOrgchrich 


TEE  A3IERIC71N  LEGION 
WAR  RISK  INSURAITCE  CQNFEHENCE 
HELD  AI     • 

WASEIUGTOIT,  P.  C. 
DECEaBER  15,   16. and  17,   1919 

BY  INVITATION  OF 
fi.  G.  C:iOI32EI3y- JOKES 
DIRECTOR  OF  THE 
BUREAU  OF 
WAR  RISK  INSURANCE 


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lOHESiORD  I  \  ,'  •>    • 

•  • '  > '  ^  ■  .' 
%.' ;  •'. ; 

TOiile  attending  th©  First  National  Convention  of'tJi^Oj    ;;"''•. 
American  Legion,   held  at  Minneapolis,   Minnesota,    November  10, 
11  and  12,    1919,   R.    G.    Cholnie ley- Jones,   Director  of  the  Bureaii 
of  War  Risk  Insiirance,   Washington,    D.    C.  ,   cade  this  annoxmceiuent 
?at  a  meeting  of  the  Committee  on  War  Risk  Ins"urance: 


"Immediately  following  the  convention  or  dvr- 
ing  the  convention  it  is  my  p-ai^ose   to   invite 
the  State  Chairman  of  every  State  in  the 
Union  to  come  to  Washington  as  soon  after  this 
convention  as  possible,    so  as  to   follow  -op  any 
recommendations  made  by  the  American  Legion.  " 


IJ^poii  liis  return  to  Washington  the  Director  of  the 
Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance  recommended  to  the   Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  that  a  conference  "be  held  at  Washington  for  the  purpose 
of   securing  cooperation  from  the  various  State  representatives  of 
the  American  Legion  in  matters  of  vital  inportance   to  former  ser- 
vice men.      The  calling  of  the  conference  was  approved  by  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Treasury,    and  under  date  of  Noveniber  28,    1919,   the  follow- 1 

ing  telegram  was  sent  by  the  Director  of  the  Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insur- 
ance to  Colonel  Franklin  D'Olier,    National  Commander  of  the  American 


Legion: 


516522 


»     «*  » 

»ot  »  •  «  »,♦ 


"You  are  urged  to  attsnd  an  important  three- 
day  conference  to  be  held  in  Washington,    conir 
mencing  Monday,    December  15,    of  all  the  State 
Commanders  of  the  American  Legion  and  the  Grand 
IlTational  Commander.        This  meeting  -vvill  consider 
all  natters  affected  by  the  resolutions  passed 
by  the  American  Legion  at  the  l\/llnn3apolis  con- 
vention and  also  pending  legislation.        An  oppor- 
tunity will  be  given  for  a  thorough  review  of  the 
work  of  the  Bureau,    its  present   condition  and  fu- 
ture program.        An  opportunity  will  be  afforded  for 
an  interview  with  official  representatives  of  the 
Vocational  Board,    the  Public  Health  Service,    th"^  Red 
Cross  and  possibly  the  members  of  the  committees  of 
the  House  and  Senate  that  have   to   do  with  ^ar  Bisk 
Insurance  natters.        Please  telegraph  your  acceptance 
or  name  of  representative  who  will  represent  you." 

(Signed)  R.    G;    CHOLIvELSY- JONES, 

Director,  Bureau  War  Risk  Insurance. 


Of  the  invitation  thus  given,   Colonel  Franklin  D'Olier, 
National  Commander,    the  American  Legion,   telegraphed  his  acceptance 
and  the  American  Legion  War  Bisk  Insurance  conferencS  began  in  the 
Bureau  of  WaJC  Risk  Insurance  in  Washington  on  Monday,   December  15, 
1919.        Sessions  of  much  interest  and  profit  were  held  as  follows: 
MDnday,   morning  and  afternoon;    Tuesday,   afternoon;    Wednesday,   morning 
and  afternoon.      A  reception  and  dinner  for  the  American  Legion  delegates 
and  the  Director  of  the  Bxireau  of  War  Risk  Insurance  and  his  staff  were 
held  ajb     the  National  Capitol  on  Tuesday  evening,   at  which  were  present 
various  United  States  Ser>ators,   Representatives  in  Congress  and  a  n\miber 
of  wounded  service  men  from  the  Walter  Reed  Hospital,    in  Washington, 


THOSE  IT  CONFERENCE 
Following  is  a  list  of  the  American  Legion  officers 
and  dolsgatee  present  at  the  three- day  conference  at  the  Bureau 

of  War  Risk  Insxirance,    December  15,    16   and  17,    1919; 

AMERICAN  LEGION  NATIONAL  COMMANDER  AND  STAFF 

FRANKLIN  D^OLIER 

National  Conmander. 

LEMUEL  BOLLES 

National  Adjutant. 


T.    W.    MILLER 
J,    T.    TA'JtLOR 

ALABAMA 
ARIZONA 

ARKANSAS 
CALIFORNIA 

COLORADO 
CONNECTICUT 

DELAWARE 


DISTRICT  OF 
COLUMBIA 


H.  H.  RAECE 
CHARLES  F.  SHERIDAN 

STATE  REPRESENTATIVES 

WILLIAM  M.  ROGERS 

ORviLLE  s,  Mcpherson 

J.  J.  HARRISON 

FRANK  V.  BRUHN 
BURON  R.  FITTS 

E,    A.  SAIDY 

ERIC  NUTT 

M.  I.  SAMUEL 
THOMAS  W.  MILLER 

E.  LESTER  JONES 
H.  H.  RAEGE 


FLORIDA 


FRANK  WIDEMAN 


e 


GEORGIA 

IDAHO 

ILLIIIOIS 

IIOIAETA 

IOWA 
KANSAS 

KENTUCKY 

LOUISIANA 

MAINE 

MARILAM) 

MASSACHUSETTS 

MICHIGAN 

MINNESOTA 

JflSSISSIPPI 

MISSOURI 

M3NTANA 

NEBRASKA 

NEVADA 

NEW  HAMPSHXSE 

NEW  JERSEY 

NEW  MEXICO 


v^ 


J.    G.    C.    BLOODWORTH 

LEROY  V.    PATCH 

MILTON  J.    K)REMAN 

T.    VICTOR  KEENE 
J.    H,    MOUNT 

RAYLDND  A.    SMITH 

W.    A.   PHARSS 
ERA^IK  E.    SAMUEL 

H.    de  HAVEN  MDORMAN 

T.    S.    WALMSLEY 

GILBERT  GREENLAW 

W.   WAYNE 

EDWARD  L.    LOGAN 

AUGUSTUS  H.  GANSSER 

HARRISON  PULLER 

PAUL  CHAMBERS 

SIDNEY  HOUSTON 

H.    C,    THOlvlPSON 

T.  J.  McGUIRE 

J,  C.  SCRUGHAM 

PRANK  J.  ABBOTT 
0.  E.  CAIN 

THOMAS  GOLDINGAY 
H.  C.  KRAMSR 

HERI/AN  C.  BACA 
BRONSON  11    CUTTING 
N.  M.  RO  SWELL 


tarn  yoEK 

NORTH  C/iROLINA 
NORTH  DAKOTA 
OHIO 

OKLAHOm 

ORSGON 
PENNSYLVANIA 

REDDS  ISLAND 

SOUTH  CAROLINA 

SOUTH  DAKOTA 

TIlNNESSKS 

TEXAS 

UTAH 

VIRGINIA 

VERMONT 

WASHINGTON 

WEST  VIRGINIA 

V/ISCONSIN 

WYOMING 


CHARLES  F.    SHERIDAN 

JOliN  WILBUR 

C.    W.   WICKERSHAM 

JOHN  A.    BSASLEY 

C.    L.    DAWSON 

HUGH  K.    MARTIN 
JOHN  J.    SASLAVSCy 

W.    B.    SIPLE 
THOMAS  J.    SHEA 

WILLIAM  B.    KILLETT 

FRANKLIN  D'OLIER 
THDIvIAS  F.  I#3HAN 
WILLIAIvI  G.    MURDOCK 

ALEXu'JIDER  H,    JOHLTSON 

JULIUS  H.    WALKER 

CLAUDE  J.    HARRIS 

H.    S.    BERRY 

CHARLES  W.    SCRUGGS 

J.    C.    'JOOD 

WILLIAM  A.    STUART 

JOHN  M.    THOMAS 

LEI/TJSL  30LLE3 
FEED  S.    HAMILTON 
F.    R.    JEFFREY 

E.    H,    SMITH 

JOHN  C.    DAVIS 

CHARLES  S.    HILL 


OF 

CCaiFEREKGE 

OP 

A:aEiaiCAN     ISGION 

STATE  EXECUTIVES 
mTH 

BxmBm  OF  wim  eisx  iksubakce 

AT 

WASHUJGTQN,  D.  C. 

PEOETBER  15-16-17,  1919 


KESraK  OF  COITEHENCE  OP  A2.7E?.rd;iN  LEGION 
STATE  EXECUTIVES  \7iTH  BuTJJ^U  OF  VaB.  ii.'SK  liJGURANCE 

At  Washington,  D,  C.^ 
LecGmber  15-16-17,  1919. 


Tho  conforenco  of  tho  Amorican  Logion  and  tho  Bureau 
of  War  Risic  Insurance,  hold  in  Washington  Doc*  15-16-17,  grow  out 
Of  the  activities  of  the  American  Legion  at  its  national  convention 
in  llinneapolis  Nov,  11-12-13, 

Tho  Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance  was  created  as  a  now 
"bureau  of  the  govornmont  to  administer  such  war  legislation  as  was 
included  in  the  original  War  Risk  Act  and  subsequent  araondrarmts  to 
that  act. 

Tiiat  such  an  organization,  destined  to  deal  in  problems 
the  size  of  which  never  before  had  been  dreamed  of,  should  havo 
functioned  iraperfoctly,  was  inevitable* 

THE  LEGION'S  NATIONAL  CONVENTION 

At  its  national  convention  in  Minneapolis  in  November, 

the  Bureau  and  its  relaitionS  to  ex-servlco  men  were  the  subject  df 

much  discussion.  The  convcntioil  Appointed  a  cofatilittoo  to  examine 

into  the  general  subject |  including  thereon  a  member  from  each  state, 

Tho  purpose  of  that  committee  was  stated  at  the  time  as  follows; 

"To  recommend  how  ex-service  persons  may  re- 
ceive the  most  effective  assistance  from  the 
American  Logion,  the  national,  state  aiid  post 
organizations,  and  also  to  recommend  what  im*- 
provemonts  in  legislation  and  administration, 
if  any,  should  be  urged  upon  the  government." 

The  spirit  in  which  that  committee  undertook  its  task 

is  best  oxen^lified  by  the  definiteness  and  business -like  form  in 


v>.  c;'  >  },  ."''-J  ■■  f^j-^-  :;-■;' 


..^rifv.^f 


,-.;..  .^;;  K,,— 


4^^^"rf  :.:v'i^i^A:^': 


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i^lch  it  STibrLitted  its  report.   The  recocii.endations  of  the  ccm- 

cittee  were  submitted  lanuer  three  heads: 

First.  VHhaX   Congress  shall  do; 

Second.  What  the  Ai^erican  Legion  shall  do; 

Third,  \!^at  the  T7&-r  Hisk  B'ureau  shall  ao. 

All  of  the  debate  and  all  the  TecoKiuondations  advanced  "by  the 

Legion  were  put  forward  in  such  a  manner  that  it  was  clear  that 

its  primary  motive  was  that  of  friendly  helpfulness  toward  the 

Bureau  itself*   In  order  tiiat  the  attitude  of  the  Legion  may  "be 

c^^dar  from  the  beginning,  its  conclusions  are  stated  now: 

1«  The  duty  of  Congress. 

(a)  pass  the  Sweet  Bill,  (a  r:ieasure  to  extend 
the  scope  and  f mictions  of  the  War  Risk  Act^ 

(To)  Pass  the  ^ason  Bill,  (a  r>easure  to  extend 
the  scope  and  effectiveness  of  the  B'^ireau*  s 
machinery  so  as  to  job  tain  intinate  contact 
with  the  men) 

(c)  Defeat  the  Harding-McCulloch  Bill*  (a  bonus 
measure) 

(d)  Pass  certain  new  legislation,  the  exact  • 
nature  of  which  is  stated  hereafter. 

2,  The  duty  of  the  An-erican  Legion, 

Launch  an  active  campaign  to  obtain  at  one© 
for  ex-service  men  ana  their  dependent  rela- 
tives the  benefits  of  the  War  Ris^  Act,  and 
to  provide  for  that  purpose  in  each  State 
organization  of  the  Legion  an  official  to 
organize-tfci.fi  state  im-ediately- through  local 
posts,  so  as  to  perfect  machinery  for  bring- 
ing about  prompt  adjustments  ana  settlements. 

3.  The  duty  of  the  Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance. 

Bnploy  more  ex-service  men  in  the  Bureau, 
give  prompt  attention  to  inquiries  directed 
to  the  Bureau,  stnd  GET  BUSY! 

These  recommendations  represented  the  best  thought  of 

the  committee  after  continuous  and  conscientious  deliberations  over 

three  days.   It  was  felt,  however,  by  the  officials  of  the  Legion 

and  by  the  Director  of  the  Bureau  as  well,  that  more  was  needed. 


.^^u=^;^^■•:..--t^'■:;•K^  .•>-.;::,>]  ^ii..:;.;  ■  ^..-■■^'j...::    ;       .;    ;..),' 
>v""'v    '.••;• -A     ..         .;;:xir-"--v'^"';  .'•'it"  ■''■*' 


-  3  - 

CONFERENCE  13  CALLED 
It  was  felt  that  a  lorgorv  more  thoroughly  organizod 
and  0quipi)od  conforonco,  v/horo  tho  machinory  of  tho  Bureau  and  of 
Congross  could  bo  inspoctod  and  obsorvod  in  oporation,  night  bo 
obtainod. 

Accordingly,  on  his  return  to  V7ashington^  Col,  R,  G. 
Cholmoloy-Jono3,  tho  Director  of  tho  Buroau,  had  a  conforonco 
with  Col,  Franklin  D'Olior,  National  Comaandor  of  tho  Logion, 
v;hich  result od  in  calling  tho  conforonco  of  stato  oonmandors 
abovo  roforrod  to. 

In  ordor  to  undorstand  not  only  tho  rocomraondations 
of  tho  committoo  at  tho  Tlinnoapolis  convention,  but  also  to  un- 
dorstand the  discussion  at  tho  Washington  conforonco,  it  might 
bo  well  to  preface  this  brief  description  of  that  conforonco  with 
a  concise  statement  with  regard  to  the  Buroau  itself, 

Tho  functions  of  the  Buroau  are  comprohonded,  roughly, 
v/ithin  four  classes- 

I  -  ITarino  Insurance,  covering  tho  lives  of  seamen,  tho 

vessels  and  their  cargoes. 

Under  the  marine  insurance  function,  the  Bu- 
reau had  issued  policies  to  the  amoimt  of 
$4,500,000,000  and  had  made  a  profit  of  $17,000,000, 

II  -  Allotments  and  allowances  to  dependents  of  men  in 

the  military  and  naval  establishments. 

Allotments  and  allowances  of  approximately 
$600,000,000  had  been  disbursed  to  2,500,000 
families  of  thoso  who  had  soon  military  or 
naval  service*  Provisions  of  tho  V/ar  Risk 
Act  enabled  some  persons  in  tho  military  and 
naval  service  —  and  compelled  certain  others  — 
to  make  allotments  from  their  pay  to  persons 
dependent  upon  thom.  In  addition,  certain  al- 
lowances v/ero  granted  dependents  and  paid  di- 
rectly out  of  public  funds* 


u    ,• 


\l  ■ 


-  4  - 

III  -  Coropen^ation  paid  for  doath  or  disability  of  pajr- 
sofcs  ougagGd  in  any  branch  of  t'lw  araaod  sorvico* 

Compensation  claims^  both  roal  and  possiblo, 
claims,   totallod  324,992  at   tha  data   of  tho 
conforenco.     Of  thoso,    140,316  have  been  al- 
lovrod;    116,571  v/ero  activo  claims  and  23,745 
havo  boon  closod  bocauso  of  doath  or   iniprovo- 
mont   of  tho  soldi or;    88,238  claims,   including 
pocsiblo  claims,  ^oro  ponding.  <» 


marmos* 


rv  -  Instoranco  of  tho  livos  of  soldiors,  sailors  and 

Approximatoly  4,000,000  mon  and  "vror-on  \70to 
insured  undor  this  Act.  Ono  in  sorvicn  might 
obtain  any  multiple  of  ^5C0  not  loss  than 
$1000  or  more  than  $10,000  of  insurance-  Tho 
avorago  policy  v.-as  for  ^8,700  and  tho  annual 
promiurns  ^300,000,000-  The  amount  of  insiir- 
anco  so  TTritten  "JTas  about  50^  greater  than 
tho  total  writ ton  by  all  ^Unerican  insurance 
companios  combinod  during  their  entire  history, 

A  provision  in  tho  organic  act  directed  that  the  payment 
of  tho  full  amount  of  tho  policy  should  bo  spread  evenly  in  monthly 
installments  over  a  poriod  of  20  yoars.  Authority  v/as  also  granted 
by  which  this  "torm  insur.acco"  could  bo  converted  without  medical 
oxamination  into  some  other  form,  such  as  ordinary  lifo,  20-payment 
life,  ondo"OTiont  maturing  at  ago  62,  or  into  other  usual  forms  of 
insuranco. 

BILLS  PEM)ING  IN  CONQresS 

The  SwGot  Bill,  to  which  roforence  has  boon  m-ide  and  which 
was  endorsed  unanimously  by  tho  Llinnoapolis  convention,  provided  for 
alteration  of  tho  organic  act  to  include: 

1.  XIatorially  increased  compensation  for  dis— 
ablod  mon» 

2,  Extension  of  tho  classes  of  persons  to  v;hom 
ins"uranco  may  bo  pryablo,  including  tho  insured's 
estate. 


-  5  - 

3.  pij^mont  of  convortod  insuranro  in  a  lump  sura 
or  monthly  installments  covering  throo  yaars  or 
more  at  the  option  of  the  insured., 

4.  3xp^nditure  of  componsation  of  mental  de- 
fect ivos  for  their  care  and  comfort  "by  the  Di- 
rector's order  without  appointment  of  legal 
guardian, 

5.  Allowing  compensation  and  automatic  insur- 
ance from  date  of  induction,  instead  of  enroll- 
mont , 

6..  Terminating  V/ar  Risk  allowancos  four  months 
after  the  declaration  of  peaco  by  the  President . 
7.  Reciprocal  provision  of  medical  and  surgical 
care  for  discharged  service  men  of  our  Allies  re- 
siding in  the  United  States, 
The  V/ason  Bill  was  designed  to  secure  hotter  administration  "by: 

1.  Authorizing  the  Bureau  to  establish  fourteen 
regional  offices  and  such  sub-offices  as  might  be 
noodod  to  bring  operations  closer  to  the  men, 

2.  Granting  it  the  right  to  advertise  in  news- 
papers and  periodicals  to  acquaint  all  persons 
v;ith  their  rights  under  the  War  Risk  Act* 

3*  To  receive  payments  of  insurance  premiums 
through  post  offices  and  rural  mail  carriers* 

NH17  EEGISLATION  HECOIUffiNHED 
The  now  legislation  rocommended  by  the  Legion  at  the 
Uinneapolis  convention  had  for  its  objects  the  following: 


•  I 


',.    v.' 


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'-  i     ••  ■'      !  > . 


J7  •;'"r:'.:;iT-. 


r  '':;■•  i;  •-:-.' 


-  6  - 
1.  Extension  of  th.3   principles  of  the  Qnoot 
Bill  so  that  term  iacurr'aaco  as  wo  11  as  con- 
vortod  insuranco  should  bo  payablo  at  option 
in  a  lump  sum. 
2m   Elimination  of   all  rostrictionf:  as  to  tho 
classos  of  permit  tod  bonoficiarios, 
3.  Holiof  of  certain  ixjrsons  fron  payaont  of 
preiniuins  on  torm  insuranco,  including  thoso  vho 
aro  rocoiving  hospital  caro  under  tho  Bureau, 
thoso  receiving  vocational  training  and  thoso 
temporarily  totally  disablod,  during  thoso 
poriods,  rotroactivo  to  tho  date  of  tho  docla- 
ration  of  war. 

4,  Free  hospital,  surgical  and  modical  caro 
for  all  sorvico  men  honorably  discharged^  if 
applied  for  v/ithin  ono   yt^ar  from  tho  dato  of 
thoir  discharge  or  passage  of  this  act,  7/hich- 
ovor  is  tho  later. 

5-  Combination  of  tho  Federal  Board  for  Vo- 
cational Training  v/ith  tho  Compensation  Pi- 
vision  of  tho  V/ar  Risk  Insurance  Bureau. 
6,  3^6vision  of  tho  rates  upon  tho  basis  of 
an  actuarial  ascertainment  of  tho  true  cost 
basod  on  oxporionce. 

THE  WASHINGTON  CONFERENCE 
Such  T;as  tho  status  at  tho  oponing  of  tho  Vi^ashington 
conforonco  on  Docembor  15.  Thoro  woro  prosent  roprosontativos 


-  7  - 
of  prnctically  all  tho  Stato  organisations,  togothor  v/ith  tho 
Kttlonal  ComD'mdor,  Frariklin  D'Olior,  ^nd  National  Adjutant 
Loimol  Bollos, 

!rh;3  pxarposo  of  tho  conferanco  v/as,  franjcly,  to  obtain 
tho  construct ivo  criticiem  and  activo  cooperation  of  tho  men 
most  diroctly  affoctod,  in  order  to  improve  to  tho  utmost  tho 
sorvico  rondorod  "by  the  Bureau,  In  opening  tho  conforonco  and 
V7olcoming  tho  dolegatos,  -tho  Diroctor  introduced  the  Hon#  Carter 
"GlasB,  Secretary  of  tho  United  States  Treasury,  who  oxeraplifiod 
tho  spirit  of  the  conforonco  "by  saying: 

"Wo  want  you  to  soo  for  yoursolvoe  somo- 
thing  of  tho  tremendous  task  that  has  hoon  under- 
taken through  tho  BUroau  of  T7ar  Risk  Insurance  for 
those  men  who  wont  across  tho  soas  and  for  those 
who  marshal lod  themselves  here  at  home,  not  only 
willing  "but  eagor  to  go  across  the  seas  to  main- 
tain tho  honor  and  dignity  of  their  country  in  a 
great  war  for  civilization* 

"The  task  undertaken  has  not  perhaps  "boon 
as  complotely  performed  as  you  or  I  might  wo 11  wish, 
hut  I  am  quite  sure  that  after  having  observation 
of  the  various  branchoe  of  this  Bureau,  you  v/ill  bo 
willing  to  concodo  that  v/hat  has  boon  done  has  b9on 
very  earnestly  dono,  and  that  any  omission  that  may 
have  occurred  has  boon  practically  unavoidable.  It 
is  a  no^   and  unique  enterprise  of  Government .  There 
were  no  beaten  paths,  no  usages  or  rules  for  our 


:i/- "■;■'!   ';-)  ■,.\,i:',   ■ -.:■    ..-..    ■  ' --r  •  ^^•  >•  r  •;- ■■■ft* -'^K  ■;^::-<-''''ift^?<>;''.^:r:' 


%    ^;.jV.'*.    "  ■   ' 


-«■     ,y 


"    "'.K     ;.',•■  ^■;-..^  •,•;;;:•'    ;       •^h;;"-j,\'     •'■■■;;•    ••.'^-•',       :  ,  .1    :'■' r  ■)-,';  :• 
'•^  .'"■   :■•  ..•;,; •.■■•'■•i■'^'i•rf•'•^■..■■^;^   ■  'vr'^p-t:v/    ^jtnjc^^v^^^^v.-'.;/?  ^-^ -'r  ■*.  ■ 


-  e  ^ 

guldanco.     It  v.t.s  cik  unoh^tod  sos.,  but  thoso 
V7ho  havG  workod  havo  v/orkod  faithfully  if  not 
alv/ays  intolligontly,  and  a  vory  soriouc   and  sin— 
coro  of  fort  has  "boon  niado  to  sorvo  you  non  v;ho  so 
gallantly  sorvod  your  country. 

»*V/o  v/ant  you  horo  for  yoiir  intimate  obsor- 
Tation  with  tho  hope  that   suggestions  niay  occur 
to  you,  that  you  inay  frankly  givo  us  your  opinions 
and  your  judgr^onts  of  "what  has  boon  dono,   of  vrhat 
is  boing  dono,   and  of  v/hat  you  think  may  bo  dono* 
^o  ospocially  v/ould  bo  obliged  to  you  for  an>  sug^ 
gostions  as  to  nocossary  logislation  to  perfect 
tho  system  ve  have  in  operation. 

"I  ^7ant  to  assure  you  very  earnestly  that  for 
the  little  v/hilo  I  shall  remain  aw  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury,  I  T7ant  to  cooperate  with  you  with  the  in- 
tensest  oarnestness  to  the  ond  that  this  system  may 
redound  to  your  good," 

The  constructive  policy  of  tho  ii^nerican  Legion  was 
outlined  clearly  by  tho  reply  of  Commnnder  D'Olier* 

»*It   is  particularly  fitting,   I  think,  that 
tho  first  mooting  under  the  new  administration 
should  be  horo  in  Washington  for  the  purpose  of 
doing  v/hat  \70  can  to  irapro'/e  the  service  rendered 
our  disabled  men  and  all  ex-sor'/ice  men.     I  want, 
in  tho  namo  of  the  Legion,  to  express  to  tho  Sec- 
retary, !:!f.  Grlass,  our  appreciation  of  tho  spirit 


.;j 


( •'•  ; 


:       .    ;      ?        •  :>        Xi   ; 


-  9  T  ■ 
in  T/Mch  ho  is  doing  his  work  and  assure  him  that  v/o, 
roprosonting  tho  State  dopartrsonts  of  tho  Amorican 
Logion,  aro  horo  for  tho  distinct  purpose  of  co- 
oporating  Trith  him  and  his  assistants  in  ovory  way 
possible.  Wo  aro  all  interested  in  exactly  tho 
samo  thing,  more  effect ivo  service  in  this  T7ork, 
and  I  want  to  assure  him  that  during  tho  noxt  throe 
days  our  whole  thought  v;ill  ho:  'What  can  wo  do  to 
help  him  and  also  to  help  tho  ex-servico  mon?»  " 

THE  COKPEREITCE  STARTS  ITS  WORK 
As  evidence  of  its  intention  to  adhere  to  tho  spirit 
outlined  "by  the  officials  of  "both  the  Legion  and  the  Government, 
the  conference  plunged  iramodiately  into  a  discussion  of  the  Swoot 
Bill,  which  previously  had  been  endorsed  by  tho  Hinnoapolis  con- 
'•ention. 

The  entire  Swoot  Bill  v/as  read  by  J,  P,  Taylor  of  the 
American  Logion  Legislative  Committee,  as  it  had  boon  amended  by 
the  Director  of  tho  Bureau,  who  had  incorporated  into  it  certain 
provisions  which  were  regarded  as  necessary  for  ox^nding  tho 
scope  and  functioning  of  tho  War  Risk  Act  to  moot  moro  accurately 
tho  obvious  wish  of  the  Congress  to  care  for  ex-servico  mon  and 
women  and  their  depondonts,  and  to  include  the  vital  points  con- 
tained in  the  Legion's  resolutions,  unanimously  adopted  at  its 
National  Convention. 

The  first  subject  of  divided  discussion  v/as  tho  onlargo- 
ment  of  beneficiary  classes  for  all  benefits  of  the  T7ar  Risk  Act, 
through  moro  general  interpretation  of  tho  moaning  of  the  terms 


i  "■ 


•  "»■ 


••    r 


'  •'■  i 


.  J.. 


:  :,     ■.■■■     :  r  •   ,  - 


-»,s.    r      j,,  -i  •- 


—J- 


-  10  - 

"child^  fathor,  raothor,  brother  and  sistor". 

Thoro  v;as  no  dissension  from  the  viow  that  the  longth 
of  tiiTiG  a.  child  had  "boon  adopted  or  the  lagitimacy  of  its  pnront- 
age  should  not  "bar  the  child  from  "benofits  of  tho  Act.  It  was 
likewise  agreed  imanimously  that  tho  term  "parent"  should  include 
step-parents,  parents  through  adoption  ojid  persons  who  had  stood 
in  loco  parentis  to  a  member  of  the  military  or  naval  forces  for 
at  least  a  year  at  any  time  prior  to  his  enlistment  or  induction. 

Considerable  stress  was  laid  on  the  wisdom  of  includ- 
ing those  persons  v/ho  stood  in  loco  parentis  to  the  ox-aorvico 
man.  The  same  feeling  existed  as  to  widening  the  terras  "hrothor" 
and  "sister"  to  include  the  children  of  persons  who  had  stood  in 
loco  parentis  to  an  ox-service  man  or  woman  so  that  the  definition 
of  the  term  should  "be  hasod  on  the  actual  homo  conditions  rather 
than  on  consangutnity. 

AUjyrjEm  am  allctt/aucb 

Consideration  of  the  allotment  and  allowance  feature 
of  the  War  Hisk  Act  evoked  little  comment.  There  was  accepted 
without  debate  the  provisions  that  the  family  allov;ance  should 
"bo  paid  to  death  or  one  month  after  discharge  but  not  more  than 
four  months  after  the  termination  of  the  present  war  emergency, 
v;hon  the  allotments  of  pay  shall  bo  made  under  such  regulations 
as  the  Secretary  of  War  and  the  Secretary  of  tho  Navy  might 
prescribe. 


■  X .  .  -'■ 


.     1, .:.•>:«:// 


COMPENSATION 
One  of  the  most   iiLportant  subjects  of  discussion  was  the 
cocp©nsa.tion  provision  of  the  Sweet  Bill,    the  tonns  of  viiJLch  aro 
taken  up  here   categorically- 
First,    the  provision  'feiat   the  Director  "b©  pormittod  to   spend 
the  compensation  due  insane  ex-serrice  men  in  pub?.ic  or  gOTortimental 
asylums  through  the  Chief  Execuvire  Officer  of  the  asyl-um  or  through 
IrrjLediate  related  dependents  evoked  discussion  regarding  the  wisdom  of 
paynonts  through  the  asj'^lvm  head. 

It  was  explained  by  the  Geri^ral  Ccwisel  of  the  Bureau  that  the 
expense  of  appointaen*  of  guardians  or  conservators,   the  coqplication 
of  legal  processes  and  the  fact   that  near  relatives  were  often  widely 
separated  from  the  ex-'Service  man,    legislatea  to  ms^ke  more  difficult 
and  unwieldy   in  many  instances   the  sir:.plest  efforts  of  the  Bureau  to 
procure  for   the  unfortunate   indi.^id\aal  the  added  care  and  cor^fort  which 
his  ooLipensation  was  devised  to  provide  for  him*     Serious  objection 
was  raised  as  to   the  propriety  of  pesmitting  asylum  superintendents 
or  executives  to  expend  the  money  of  the  patient  lest   it  night  result 
in  the  exploitation  and  waste  of  funds- 

A  coinprfiimise  was  effected  under  which  the  Congress  was  re- 
quested to  perciit  the  Director,    if  satisfied  that  mental  incompetency 
existed,    to  order  all  money  payable  under  the  Act  paid  into   the  Treasury 
of  the  United  States  to   the   credit  of  the  beneficiary,   with  a  further 


r 


■,  1 


-i...:i; 


12. 

proTiso  that  all  such  funds  should  be  dispelled  under  an  orddr  of  the 
Director  and  sub^^ect  to  his  discretion,  thus  leaving  him  power  to  with- 
draw  the  privilege  of  expending  funds  in  cases  vdiere  he  believed  the 
person  who  would  otherwise  be  chosen  to  be  incocpetent,  dishonesty 
or  lacking  in  a  sense  of  responsibility*  Authority  was  asked,  under 
such  circumstances  as  the  Director  might  deem  proper,  to  pay  such  funds 
over  tn  .the  wif  a^  dependent  husband,  nrtnor  children,  or  dependent  parents 
of  any  such  inzDBte* 

ESTABLISHMENT  OF  MILITARY  STATUS 
The  exact  point  a>t  v(4iich  civilian  life  stops  and  military 
life  begins  has  been  debatable.,  soL.e  authorities  holding  that  it 
begins  at  the  point  of  induction  by  the  local  draft  board  but  be- 
fore acceptance  and  enrollment  for  active  service.  Other  authorities 
have  held  that  military  service  begins  only  with  acceptance  and  en- 
rollment» 

There  was  a  unanimous  opinion  that .J9er sons  v\ho  were  disabled 
v^le  in  this  anomalous  transition  period  between  induction  and  en^- 
rollment  should  be  considered  as  entitled  to  cornpensation  for  any  in- 
jury suffered  in.  the  line  of  duty.  It  also  was  agreed  that  any  in- 
surance application  made  during  the  same  period  should  be  deemed  valid* 
The  entire  compensation  article  was  made  retroactive  to  April 
6,  1917,  the  date  of  the  beginning  of  the  war,  with  the  requirement  that 
any  pensions  or  other  gratuities,  otherwise  received,  should  be  deducted* 


't^.    0  4/ 


■7.y:^  r- 


•^x 


•*on 


.v;^^:.v;.i..  .'Vi  .    v 


-■■'    •  .■*  ■  1  .. 


r..- 


;x 


:siz 


vX-J      ii.K 


1.i.^: 


rA.74.  ■:;      ;■ 


■::t  *;ff-.^    -:5 


13- 

INCREASE  IN  COMPENSATION 
No  single  subject  caace  \g?  for  discussion  in  the  Minneapolis 
Convention  of  the  Legion  on  \^ich  sentiment  was  more   strongly  ex- 
pressed than  the  demand  for  increased  coiipensation  for  eerrice  men  and 
women  disabled  during  the  war* 

No  single  subject  had  more  persistently  engrossed  the  at- 
tention of  both  the  Legion  in  its  deliberations  and  the  Bureau  of 
War  Eisk  Insurance  in  its  efforts  to  make  its  service  conform  more 
complotely  to  the  effect  desired  by  the  Congress  to  care  for   these    .1^ 
disabled  ex-service  men  and  wcoea. 

It  had  come  to  be  an  accepted  principle   that  teijgporary  total 
disability,   which  was  the  basis  on  vdiich  most  caipensation  was   computed^ 
should  be  the  same  as  the  maintenance  allowance  of  men  taking  vocational 
training  from  the  Federal  Board  for  Vocational  Education* 

Accordingly,    the  provisions  of  the  bill  were  q.uite  generally 
acclaimed,    in  enlarging  the  sunount  to  be  paid  for  a  person  temporarily 
totally  disabled  from  the  basis  of  $30*00  for  an  unmarried  clafeant,   as 
it   existed  in  the  original  Act,    to  $80.00  with  an  addition  of  $10.00 
for  a  wife  and  $5.00  for  each  child  to  include  two,  and  $10.00  for 
each  dependent  parent. 

It  was   called  to  the  attention  of  the  Conference  that  figures 
had  been  submitted  to  the  Legion  at   its  l^tional  Convention  which  would 
have  matde  the  additional  amount  for  a  wife  $15.00,    the  aaditional  amouj^t 
for  the  first  child  $10.00,    for  the  second  child  $7«50  and  for  each 
child  thereafter  $5.   and  this  was  put  forth  as  the  desire  of  the  Legion. 


u'UZ'/i,    Wei..' 


'■:      ."',        ..■■'/  '4..  ,w"'N«  1'*^  ■  .■' 


'■'■:''    o:S:'j-i>-''^''^'..'^-a.-      'A-vi 


.:,•■";■.  *  ^i\'.:^rc.:.zX...:',-- 


"i  :i:o ;  '.  "^  ■ .  •■ 


"v  ..■,:■     'l^/j-  ;?  £  "1*.- ■;     ";  ■.     '  i^:£fji  if■^>■■• 


i.  /.  i      ■■'»  ■♦  .     .      ,"    , 


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14. 

To  this  was  applied  th©  pr^eent  existing  ruling  ♦-Jbfcat  jriartial  and 
temporary  disability  woxild  be  compensated  by  the  percentage  of  physical 
disability,  viiiich  would  be  the  yard  scale  by  which  would  be  measured  ''the 
reduction  in  earning  capacity",  and  that  it  would  not  depend  at  all  on 
the  previous  aiEOunt  cf  pay  which  the  soldier  earned  or  what  he  received 
after  service* 

Both  the  original  Act  and  the  Sweet  Bill  provided  that  a  scale 
of  ratings  of  percentage  of  dicabllity  should  b©  made  up  by  the  Medical 
Advisor  of  the  Bureau.   Disfcussion  of   this  scale  brought  out  the  fact  that 
the  AT^ierican  schedule  of  estimates  was  far  iLore  liberal  than  any  in  use  in 
any  of  the  allied  countries*   The  only  one   which  approaches  the  United  States 
in  this  respect  is  Canada,  but  even  the  Canadian  schedule  is  considerably 
less  liberal  than  the  At^erican  6cale» 

It  was  agreed  that  the  Bureau  practice  of  including  tuberculars 
\mddr  the  heading  of  tomporarily  totally  disabled  persons  until  an  ex- 
amination could  be  mada  to  dstermABe  their  poss.ibiiity  of  recovering, 
was  the  correct  procedure. 

For  percianent,  total  disability  it  was  agreed  that  the  flat  rate 
of  $100  per  month  would  apply  and  the  classes  of  injuries  heretofore  sched- 
uled as  constituting  total  perL:anent  disability  we're  enlarged;  the  in- 
crease for  dependents,  provided  for  persons  temporarily  totally  disabled, 
was  applied  here. 

It  was  provided  audit ionally,  that  should  a  man  suffer  from 
two  injuries,  each  of  which  would  constitute  total  and  permanent  dis- 
ability, he  would  receive  #200  per  month;  should  any  disabled  person  bo  so 


■J      ./J- 


.OVI. .;-,'.■;       >r{     f. 


«  yrt--.. 


V  .    .'J      Wy.j, 


i' J 


r^'     ii -!:::•;  t; 


ah..'  >:>;.: 


t    '{• 


.;;    :;  i..f  ;  ...     ■;)  i    ■      •-  >  .  ■.:•};)<..  v-      ,     :.•■■    • 

■•..;•■  r  ■■■.    ;  J  ;,  ..J,  i---     i-.:.    .:..li. ..■;..:;>?     .1.  / 

:!-.i:       '.  -  '>      ■  :;      iV:        jij^";     ^  .■.:;*.:■■.  0      •••     -J  ^      ;■- 

..  /;  .>  ■  .■■  ji'i .    iX   ->'{■; 


i      :'!J,-   '.■ 


(      ■'.       ;■      i 


li  !-i   ::i   ■:  :\:-    1 


a    .nj. 


i.i 


1  , 


:4,   7.,,'X 


15* 

helpless  as  to  reCLuire  a  nurs©  or  alitandant,  an  additional  $20  per  conth 
could  b©  allowed* 

©le  same  method  of  computing  aLiOunts  to  be  paid  men  partially 
and  permanently  disabled  was  agreed  upon  as  was  provided  IPor  men  partia].ly 
and  teiaporarily  disabled;  that  is,  it  would  depend  on  the  percentage  of 
reduction  in  actxjal  physical  capacity. 

In  addition  to  conipensation,  it  was  agreed  that  the  injured 
person  should  be  furnished  medical,  surgical  and  hospital  services  and  all 
prosthetic  appliances  that  might  be  deemed  necessary. 

RECIPROCAL  COIPENSATION 
The  Bureau's  suggestion  that  Ciodical  and  surgical  care  be  provid- 
ed the  honorably  disoharged  ex--service  men  of  our  Allies,  as  a  part  of  a 
reciprocal  arrangement  being  developed  among  the  several  coiintries,  met 
unanimous  consent  and  agreement  fi*om  the  conference* 


16, 

INSURANCE 

On  a  parity  of  importanc<i  with  componsation  was  the  snibjact  of 
Ins\irance  and  such  c±iang3s  as  might  be  rogardod  necessary  for  making  it 
most  accoptabl^,     Thj  provisions  of  automatic  insurance  of  $25  p^jr  month 
for  3^0  months  ware  oxtonded  unanimously  to  apply  from  th3  beginning  of 
thj  '^ar   to    tho  dato  of   tho  armistics;    to   include  mon  from  date  of  induction 
instaad  of  from  dat^  of  onrollmont   into   sjrvic^;    and  to  includo  any  man 
mooting  dviath  or   total  disability  .vithin  120  days  after  his   on  try  into 
sorvicc,   or  aft^r  October  15,  1917.     A  provision  was  askad,  however,    that 
if  a  man  applied  for  insuranct^  aftsjr  the  130 -day  limit  aind  had  been  paying 
prviraiums  on  it,  his  application  be  deemed  valid. 

The  only  discussions  on  this  arose  from  a  provision  to  apply  the 
automatic  insurance   to  all  men  on  board  the  Ifaitsd  States  Ship  Cyclops, 
which  is  believed  to  have  sunk  at  sea  March  4,   1918.      Ihe  discussion  was 
whether   the  automatic  insurance  would  curtail   the  rights  of  men  who  may 
have  applied  for  more   than  this  amount  of  insurance.      IHie  proposal  was  ac- 
cepted, however,  when  it  was  made  known   that  several  persons  on  b.oard  this 
ship  w^ro   still  within  the  120-.day  period,  and,    too>  other  War  Risk  records 
are  believed  to  have  been  on  board. 

INCREASED  BENEFICIARY  CLASSES 

The  n^xt  subject  of  apparent  vital  interest  was  the  enlargement 
of   the  classes  of  beneficiaries  of   insurance,  beyond  those  enlargements  made 
at  the  beginning  of   the  discussion  as  applying  to  family  allowance  and 
cotTjpensation,  as   veil  as  insurance,   in  the  enlarganant  of   the  definitions 
of  terms  used  in  the  Act, 


'"   fit 


V      .'••  ^ 


i.." 


.  <  r 


,7VL    '.Mf^ 


17. 

The  draft  prepared  by  the  Director  of  the  Bureau,  >vhich  -rould  have 
enlarged  these  classes  to   include  also  uncles,  aunts,  nephews,  nieces, 
brothers-in-law,   sisters-in-law,  was  axicepted  and  the  discussion  had  pro- 
coeded  to   other  matters   in  subsequent  meetings,  when  the   subject   came  up 
again  on  the  declaration  of  a  delegate   to   this  general   effect: 

"We  were  instructed  positively  by  the  National  Convention  in  its 
unanimous  adoption  of   the  report  of   the  7^ar  Risk   committee^   to   seek  the  el- 
imination of  all  restrictions   to   tho  classes  of  beneficiaries.     If  we  recede 
from  this  point,  we  do   so  without  authority  and  in  direct  violation  of  our 
instructions," 

^liorjupon  the  conference  determined  to   request  Congress  that  all 
restrictions  be  eliminated. 

In   the  line  of   subsequent  developments,   it  may  be  well    to    set  down 
here  certain  provisions  which  had  been  included  in  the  draft  of  the  Bill 
submitted  by  the  Director,  which   included  among  other   things,   these: 

1,  If  the  insured  leave  no  beneficiary,  the  insurance  woTild 
go  to  his  estate, 

2.  If  survived  by  beneficiaries,  all  of  whom  die  before  all 
payments  are  rrade,  the  balance  would  go  to  the  estate  of  the 
last  beneficiary. 

5.     If  converted,  and  no  beneficiary  be  named,  or  if  the 
designated  beneficiary  docs  not  soirvivc  the   insured,    the  un- 
paid insurance  goes  to  the  estate  of  the  insured, 
4.     If  converted,   and  the  designated  beneficiary  survives   the 
insured  and  dies  before  receiving  all  of  the  converted  insur- 
ance payable,   the  remainder  goes  to   that  beneficiary's  estate. 


\::-.    ^^ 


'J   i.vio. 


;  >     I 


u 


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'I    .-•!-: 


LUMP  5DM  P)iTMfTT^ 
Probably  the  feature  of  insurance  of  greatest  concern   to   the  Legion 
vsxeciitives  present,  was   the  desire  for  the  payment  of  insiirance  to  b»;nefi- 
ciaries  in  a  limp  S"urD. 

The  draft  under  discussion  provided  that  converted  insurance  only 
could  be  paid  optionally  in  a  lump   sum  or  in  monthly  installments  for  36 
months  or  Hiore  at  the   election  of   the  insiired.   It  elect  would  permit  the 
bonjf iciary,    in  the  absence  of  an  election  by  the   insured,    to  receive  pay- 
ments in  monthly  installments  of  36  months  or  more  but  not  for  a  lump   sum. 
Again  the  explicit   instructions  of   the  National  Convention  Arere 
called  to  mind  by  a  delegate  who   insisted   that    the  same  optional   settlements 
bo  provided  for   term  insurance  as  for  converted  insurance.      So  overwhelming 
was   this  sentiment  that  the  conference  adopted  the  following  resolution: 
"Resolved,   that  it  is   the  sense  of   this  conference  that 
both   term  insurance  maturing  after  November  11,   1918,   and  all 
converted  insurance  may  be  paid  in  a  lump   sum  and  liiat   all  pro- 
visions of  the  V'ar  Risk  Act  which  limit   the  class  of  persons  to 
be  designated  as  beneficiary  of  any  Government  insurance,  be 
repealed."  • 

In  response   to  an  inquiry  as  to  why  similar  payment  could  not  be 
a.adc   to  benef iciaric^s  of  persons  who  met  d^ath  during  the  ^ar,    the  Director 
explained  that    to  pay  such  claims   there  woiild  be  required  an  immediate  ap- 
propriation of  $1,080,000,000,  which  was  not  possible  at  this  time.     It 
therefore,  was  agreed  that   these  options  could  r^t  be  applied  to  war  losses 
theiTiSelves  because  of  the  magnitude  of  the  financial  problem  that  would  be 
involved. 


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LUMP  5DM  "PllYMF?<TS 
Probably  the  feature  of  insurance  of  greatest  concern   to   the  Legion 
executives  present,  was   the  desire  for  the  payment  of  insiirance  to  benefi- 
ciaries in  a  luiip  stun. 

The  draft  under  discussion  provided  that  converted  insurance  only 
could  be  paid  optionally  in  a  luLp   sxan  or  in  monthly  installments  for  56 
months  or  more  at  the   election  of   the  insiired.   It  aleo  would  permit  the 
beneficiary,    in  the  absence  of  an  election  by  the  insured,    to  receive  pay- 
ments in  monthly  installments  of  36  months  or  more  but   not  for  a  liimp   sum. 
Again  the  explicit   instructions  of   the  National   Convention  were 
called  to  mind  by  a  delegate  who   insisted   that    the  same  optional   settlements 
be  provided  for   tenn  insurance  as  for  converted  insurance.      So  overwhelming 
was   this  sentiment  that  the  conference  adopted  the  following  resolution: 
"Resolved,    that  it  is   the  sense  of   this  conference  that 
both   term  insurance  maturing  after  November  11,   1918,   and  all 
converted  insurance  may  be  paid  in  a  limp   sum  and  that   all  pro- 
visions of  the  ^'ar  Risk  Act  which  limit   the  class  of  persons  to 
be  designated  as  beneficiary  of  any  Government  insurance,  be 
repealed."  • 

In  response   to  an  inquiry  as  to  why  similar  payment  could  not  be 
Qiadc   to  benefici arises  of  persons  who  met  dk^ath  during  the  ^ar,    the  Director 
explained  that   to  pay  such  claims   there  would  be  required  an  immediate  ap- 
propriation of  $1,080,000,000,  which  was  not  possible  at  this  time.     It 
therefore,  was  agreed  that   these  options  could  rx)t  be  applied  to  war  losses 
themselves  because  of   the  magnitude  of  the  financial  problem  that  would  be 
involved. 


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19. 

Supplemonting   their  determinatione,    it  was  decided  by  motion   that 
each  person  present  on   the  following  morning   should  call  upon  his  sonator* 
and  representatives  and  urge  forcefully  upon  them,    the  Legion's  request  that 
the  essence  of   the  foregoing  resolution  bo  included  in   the  Sweet  Bill 

WASON  BILL 

Discussion  of  the  Wason  Bill,   a  measure  \Aiiich   the  Minneapolis 
Convention  unanimously  recommended  for  immediate  passage,    took  up  first  the 
decentralization  of   the  Bureau  so    that  its  functioning  mi^t  be  brought   into 
mora  intimate  connection  with  ex-service  men  and  women. 

This  was  first  considered  in  connection  with  the  proposstl   to  divide 
the  nation  into   regional  districts  in  accordance  with  population  and  other  con 
siderations,    similar  to    the  regional  division  of  the  Federal  Reserve  Bank 
system,    the  U,   S,   Public  Health  Service,    the  Federal  Board  for  Vocational 
Education  and  the  American  Red  Cross,   all  directly  connected  with   the  task  of 
serving  the   soldier,    sailor  and  marine;    the  proposal  was  for  a  central  office 
in  each  region  and  such   sub-offices  as  were  needed  for   the  best  interests  of 
the  organization. 

There  was  no  question  about  the  necessity  for   their  establishment, 
to  provide  some   tangible  channels  of  communication  between  the  men  and   the 
B\ireau» 

NECESSITY  FOR  ADVERTISHTG 
The  discussion  then   turned  to    that   section  of   the  Bill  which  would 
permit  the  Bureau  to  advertise  in  newspapers  and  magazines  in  order   to  acquain 
persons  entitled  to   the  benefits  of   the  War  Risk  Act  with  their  rights  and 

privileges.     Debate  brought  forth  the  fact  that  much  irregularity  has  resulted 

r 

in  the  past  because  of  extreme  centralization.  Literature  which  is  sent  out 


:-i  v:r;>i'' T  ■  ^»:i'*":tTjj  1.':  '.:'■: 


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to  persons  who  come  within  the  operation   of   the  Act  must  be  printed  in 
enormous  quantities.      From  4,000,000  to  6,000,000  circulars  are  frequently 
mailed  at  a  time.      Taking  into  consideration  the   time  lost  in  printing  and 
the   time  lost   in  mailing  from  a  central  office,   it   is  not  unusual  for   three 
months  to  elapse  between  the   time  copy  is   submitted  to  a  printer  and  de- 
livery  to   the  last  addressee.     Under  such  circumstances,   centralisation  is 
not  an  aid,   but  a  hindrance. 

It  works  especial  hardships  in   the  case  of   soldiers,  mary  of  whom 
are  yovtng,   unmarried,   and  do  not  remain  long  in  one  place.     It  is  usual,   as 
a  result  of    these  delays,   for  approximately  30^  of   the  correspondence  or 
circiilars   sent  out  to  be  returned  to   the  Bureau,     To  obviate   this,   it  has 
seemed   that  advertising,  which  offers  a  direct,   rapid,   and  much  more  eco- 
nomical way  of   spreading  such  important  information,  would  add  enormously  to 
the  efficiency  of   the  Bureau  and  would  be  considerably  more  economical. 

COLLECTION  OF  PREMIUMS 
One  feature  of  the  Bill,  which  had  iinanimous  approval  and  which  was 
regarded  as  extremely  important  by  the  delegates  to   the  conference,  was   that 
provision  which  would  authorize   the  Secretary  of   the  Treasiary  and  the  Post- 
master-General  to  prescribe  rules  and  regulations  for  the  collection  of  Insur- 
aice  premiums  through  Post  Offices  and  Rural  Mail  Carriers,      Ihere  was  some 
discussion  as  to  how  much  of   the  Post  Office  Organization  should  be  used  in 
this  collection,   and  it  finally  was  agreed  that   the   text  of   the  Bill,    in  pro- 
viding that  the  Cabinet  Officers  concerned  could  arrange  for  the  collection 
in  any  manner  deemed  most   expedient   and  satisfactory,   gave  the  Director  of   the 
Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance   sufficient  opportunity   to  put    this  collection 
system  into   effect   in  the  manner  found  by  experience  to  be  most  desirable. 


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r-  .,  {,!        I  ■  r:fc/-v.''-:    ,1 0  h' .•■ :.  ^  :t-'"'s'" '^    ■■  •   . '■!  •'^   ^r.:/!   r^r^-i^    l:V   ;.fc;.;-;;   von    •):♦    :r 


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2Z,.       

Aside  from  the  customary  provision  of  a  section  of  the  Bill  ap- 
propriating sTifficient  funds  to  carry  out  the  purposes  of   the  Act, in  this  in- 
stance $2,000,000,    the  Director  had  attached  to    the  original  Wason  Bill  cer- 
tain further  corrections   to    the  original  War  Risk  Act,   which  had  been  re- 
garded as   subjects  of  considerable  importance  by  the  American  Legion 
National  Convention, 

Two  of  these,   relating  to  removal  of  all  restrictions  as  to   classes 
of  insurance  beneficiaries  and  payment  of  all  insurance  in  a  lump  sum,   as  here- 
tofore related,  had  been  transferred   to   the  Sweet  Bill  earlier  in  the   session, 
Ihere  remained  four  other   subjects,   regarded  by  the  Conference  as  of  great 
importance; 

1,  To   relieve  from  the  payment  of  premiums  on  Term  In- 
surance,  retroactive   to  October  6,   1917,   persons  receiv- 
ing hospital   care  from  the  Bureau,    those  receiving  hos- 
pital care  from  the  Bureau,    those  receiving  vocational 
training,   and  those   temporarily  and  totally  disabled 
during   the  periods  of   those  conditions. 

2,  To  enable   the  Bureau  to  provide  without  cost  hospital, 
surgical   and  medical  care  and  treatment  for  all  honorably 
discharged  ex-service  men  and  women,   regardless  of  the 
origin  or  aggravation  of  their  disabilities,   on  their  ap- 
plication within  one  year  from  the  date  of   their  discharge 
or  from  the  date  on  which  this  Bill,    as  an  Act,  would  go 
into   effect,  whichever  was  the  later. 

3,  Payments  of  converted  insurance,  when  it  matures  by 
reason  of  a  total  and  permanent  disability  of  the  insured, 
should  be  made,  not  from  premium  receipts,   but  from  the 
war -hazard  appropriatiojis  of  the  goverrment,   inasmuch  as 
the  converted  rates  contain  no  provision  for  this  extra 
payment, 

4«     Payments  for   total,  permanent  disability  should  not 
diminish  the  amount  that  would  have  been  payable  at    the 
death  of  the  insured  or  other  maturity  of  the  insurance, 
had  no  payments  been  made  for   such  disability. 


•  ;r:^'  S  f 


83 

CONSOLIDATIOIT  0FG0V2RNMSNT  AGEITCIES 

At   tlie  Minneapolis  convention,    stress  was  laid  on  a  request 

to   Congress  to 

"Coinbine   the  Federal  Board  for  Vocational  Training 
with  the   Coriipensation  Division  of   the  Bureau  of  War  Risk 
Insurance.  " 

iThis   suggestion  was  brought  "before   the  conference  in  connection  with  the 
fact   that  Senator  Eeed  SiDDot  of  Utah  had  announced  it  was  his  purpose 
to    seek  by  legislation  to  break  tip   the  Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance, 
placing  the  various  divisions  in  several  different  govemmental  depart- 
ments for  administration.        The  Senator's  idea  was  to  place  the  Allot- 
ment and  Allowance  Division  in  the  War  and  Ifevy  Departments;    the  Com- 
pensation Division  in  the  Pension  Office  of  the  Department  of  the  In- 
terior;   and  the   Insurance  Division  in  the  Post  Office  Department.      The 
delegates  became  very  much  aroused  over  the  proposal  to   disjoint  and 
scatter  the  B\ireau  at  a  time  when  "obviously  and  pointedly  it  was  reach- 
ing effective  functioning.  " 

The  attitude  of  the  conference  is  best  indicated  by  the 
fact   that   they  regarded  this  matter  of  such  inportance  that  in  addition 
to  instructing  their  regular  legislative  committee  to  oppose  all  efforts 
to   disorganize  the  Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance,    the  conference  unani- 
mously provided  in  addition  a  special  committee  to  wait  "upon  Senator 
Smoot  and  other  members  of  Congress  who  were  advocating  disintegration 
of   the  Bureau,   and  to  use  every  effort  available   to   "prevent   this  dis- 
astrous thing  that  we  are  trying  to  avoid,  " 


23 

The  delegates  also  -unaninio-ugly  adopted  a  stateiaent  of 
opiaton  to  the  effect  that   the  American  Legion  regarded  as  essential 
the   consolidation  and  coordination  of  the  Bureau  of  War  Risk  Insurance, 
the  Federal  Board  for  Vocational  Education,    the  United  States  Public 
Health  Service  and  other  governmental  agencies  participating  in 
the  work     for  ex-service  men  and  their  dependents  "under  one  directing 
head,    rather  than  wasting  its  effectiveness  by  scattering  it  still 
farther  than  at  present.        This  was  urged  for  reasons  of  economy, 
efficient  administration,    and  effective  fvaictioning. 

On  a  subsequent  day  thi^  na^tter,   in  which  the  delegates 
showed  much  concern,    came  up  for  further  discussion,        The  delegates 
s-upported  their  contention  that  Senator  Smoot' s  plan  would  not  "bring 
about  econoiry,   by  bringing  to  light   some  facts  about  personnel  required. 
For  instance,    the  Senator  believed  that  2,500  clerks  in  the  War  and 
Navy  Departments  could  handle  the  allotment  and  allowance  work,    whereas 
it  developed  that  in  the  present  Allotment  and  Allowance  Division  only 
2,200  workers  were  engaged,   and  this  nijmber  was  being  reduced  with 
remarkable  rapidity. 

As  to  a  transfer  of  compensation  work,    it  was  learned  this 
would  require  an  entire  new  set  of  records  and  would  destroy  the 
efficiency  that  had  been  built  up  in  using  the  same  records  for  both 
insurance  and  conpensation  claim?  whiGb  wevq  thf*  pris-=u3nt'  practdc©  in  the 
Bureau* 


24 
The. delegates  agrood  with  the  suggestion  of  the  Director 
that  the  insurajace  problem  was  iiot  sinply  one -of  premium  collection, 
but  that  this  collection  was-only  a  detail  of  the  iniOGnso  problem 
of  handling  an  insurance  conpany  larger  than  soveral  of  ihe  largest 
commercial  conpanies  combined,   with  all  the  conplex  administrative 
details  of  such  a  business. 

It  was  agreed  that  the  principal  value  of  the  Post  Office 
to  insurance  would  be  in  the  convenience  in  premium  collection,  all 
of  which  already  had  been  included  in  the  Wason  Bill, 

BECEPTION  AT  THS  CAPITOL 

At  the  opening  of  the  conference  there  was  received  an  in- 
vitation from  members  of  Congress  to  a  reception  and  dinner  for  the 
national  and  state  conmanders  of  the  American  Legion  and  the  Director 
of  the  Bureau  of  War  Hisk  Insurance  and  his  staff  on  the  evening  of 
the   second  day  of  the  conference.        This  was  held  in  the  dining  hall 
of  the  House  of  Representatives,   and  in  addition  to  the  guests  mentioned 
there  was  present  a  grox^i  of  sixteen  wounded  ex-service  men  from  Walter 
Reed     Hospital. 

At  this  dinner,   all  of  the  thought  and  conclusions  reached 
by  the  conference,   up  to  that  point,   were  condensed  into  one  evening's 
expression  to  the  Members  of  Congress  of  the  things  regarded  by  the 
Legion  as  needed  to  meet  the  Government's  obligation  to  ex-service 
men  and  women.        Senator  Smoot,    in  addressing  the  gathering,    declared 
he  was  determined  to  apply  all  his  influence  and  energies  toward  pro- 
c_uring  the  proinptest  and  most  effective  service  for  ex-service  men  and 
their  dependents.        The  Senator  expressed  it  thus: 


25 

"What  I  deem  .to  be  tho   just   sentiments  of  the 
Oeafcers  of  the  Legion  I  shall  imdertake  to  put  into  legislative 
form  and  support  it  with  all  the  power  at  my  command,  " 
He  declared  ho  wanted  it  understood  that  ho  had  no  fight  against  the 
Bureau  as   such.        In  this  connection  he   said: 

"I  want   to   say  that  there  is  no  (question  of  a 
doubt  but  that  Col,    Gholme ley- Jones,    the  present  Director, 
has  vastly  iinproved  the  admnistration  of  the  Bureau." 

Senator  Smoot  further  defined  his  attitude  toward  the  Buroau 
in  the  following  words: 

"The  government  must   see  that  whatever  it  owes  you 
mast  come  into  your  hands  with  just  as  little  delay  as  possible, 
'.«'         with  just  as  little  trouble  as  possible,   and  the  organization 
to  acconplish  this  is  what  I  want. 

"And  if  the  War  Risk  Bureau  is  that  organization 
and  this  can  be  demonstrated,   well  and  good  for  the  War 
.A         Ei  sk  Bureau.  " 

To  the  assembled  Members  of  Congress*    the  Legion  enphasized 
its  demands  for; 

1.      Immediate  passage  of  the  Sweet  Bill; 
2»     Passage  of  the  Wason  Bill; 
3.    Consolidation,   instead  of  disintegration,   of  govemmontftl 
agencies  working  for  ex-service  men. 


26 

The  sixteon  wo-unded  service  joen  related  thoir  exporirmces, 
ono  aftor  tho  othor,  pointing  oiit  th«  insufficiency  of  con^jonsabions, 
the  narrowness  of  insurance  and  the  corqplexity  of  obtaining  their 
benefits  under  the  War  Sisk  Act,    all  of  which  faults  and  difficulties 
the  Legion  declared  would  bo  ovorcomo,    should  the  Congress  pass  the 
Sweet  and  Wason  Bills  and  coordinate   the  activities  of  the  Bureau  of 
War  Risk  Insurance,    the  Federal  Board  for  Vocational  Education,   and 
the  United  States  Public  Health  Service. 

Coining  down  towards  the  close  of  tho  meeting,   Congrossnian 
Burton  E.    Sweet  of  Iowa,   author  of  the  Sweet  Bill,   brought  to  a  point 
what  was  in  the  minds  of  all  of  the  guests  present  when  he  said: 
"These  disabled  men  have  grave  need  for  this 
legislation  now.        The  l^ited  States  Senate  during  tho 
past  four  months  has  been  considering  unusual  questions, 
*  *  *  *  If  this  bill  were  now  a  law,   we  would  not  be  listen- 
ing to  the  statements  and  complaints  from  tho  boys  at 
Walter  Reed  Hospital  tonight;    they  would  be  receiving  the 
coEpensation  to  which  they  are  justly  entitled, 

"In  my  judgment  thoro  would  bo  nothing  nobler, 
nothing  grander  for  tho  United  States  Senate  to  do   than 
to  make  tho   soldiers  of  tho  Republic  a  Christmas  present 
bypassing  this  bill  immediately."  / 


It-:-.-,  '.f- 


...  V.  V , 


■fk^'.      ..,< 


r-  :=r. 


u    :i:i 


27 

Hep  re  sent  at  ive  Frank  W,    Lfcndsll  of  Wyoming,   Majority 
ieiader  of  the  House  of  RepresentAtives,  put  the   same  situation 
directly  xxp  to  Senator  Smoot  by  asking  if  the  latter  would  not 
report  the  hill  out  for  unanimous  consent  at  onco.        Later  Senator 
Smoot  declared  ho  would  bring  the  bill  before  the  Senate  in  time 
^or  passage  before  Christmas, 

Before  this,   however,    the  Legion  had  declared  very  frankly 
to   the  Senator,    through  the  chairman  of  its  special  coxnuitte©  here- 
tofore referred  to  and  the  chairman  of  its  legislative  committee,    that 
the  Legion  was  very  sincere  and  very  earnest  in  urging  that  consolida- 
tion and  coordination  of  government  ag3ncies     set  aside  for  the  ox- 
service  man  and  his  dependents  should  be  effected,    rather  than  the 
further  distribution  of  their  activities, 


28 

ADIvUNISTRATIVE  S^PICISNCY 

Consideration  of  tho  adroinistrative  effieioncy  of  tho  Bureau 
of  War  Risk  Insurance  had  been  expected  to  consume  considera^ble  time 
and  "bring  forth  considerable  discussion.  When  it  was  discovered,  how- 
ever, that  the  approximately  17,000  persons  once  enployed  had  been  re- 
duced to  13,000  and  that  the  personnel  was  expected  by  January  1  to  be 
down  to  10,000,  the  delegates  expressed  themselves  as  satisfied  in  this 
regard. 

There  was  an  inquiry  about  the  number  of  ex-service  men  oi&- 
ployed,   growing  out  of  tho  Legion  Conrention's  request  that  the  Bureau 
"einploy  more  ex-service  men."       It  was  related  that  of  the  2000  men 
enployed  in  the  Bureau,    1018  were  ex-service  men,    including  all  of  the 
administrative  heads,   and  that  all  vacancies  hereafter  were  being  filled 
by  ex-service  men.  The  Conference  approved  the  declaration  by 

several  delegates  that  the  Legion  would  not  want  to  be  in  a  position  of 
requesting  the  arbitrary  discharge  of  efficient  enployoes  merely  to  in- 
crease the  number  of  ex-service  men,    and  voiced  its  approval  of  the 

policy  of  filling  all  vacancies  with  ex-service     enjiloyees, 

I 

Ct-0Pr:RATI0N  OF  THE  LSGION 
Coming  now  toward  the  conclusion  of  their  conference,  tho 
delegates  and  the  Bureau  representatives  devoted  their  attention  to 
concrete  and  specific  methods  by  which  their  mutual  cooperation  might 
bring  the  utmost  proii5)tness  and  effectiveness  in  procuring  for  ex- 
service  men  and  their  dependents  their  rights  and  privileges  under  tho 
War  Risk  Act,   Several  delegates  declared  that  they  had  followed  the 
policy  which  had  been  laid  down  in  the  Minneapolis  Convention  by  a 


i  - 


1.1 


'  '<  "     ■  '  t' 


I'vfr. 


J :. 


■  .  .  •  r- 


1  :  .:  '.■  V. 


•     .r 


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29      . 

delegate  from  Illinois  as  ths  roost  offeotivo  moans  of  "bringing  about 
proript     service  from  the  WasJaington  Bureau^   to  wit,   learning  how  claims 
should  b3  presented  and  sending  them  in  corqplete. 

That  this  idea  was  applicable  equally  well  to  other  Govern- 
ment Bureaus  before  '.vhich  ox- service  men  and  women  have  occasion  to  pre- 
sent claims  was  made  clear  in  talks  to  the  delegates  by  Brigadi  err  Gene  rati 
E    ML   Lord,   Director  of  Finance  of  the  Anoy;   Uel  W,    Lankin,   Chief  of  the 
Rehabilitation  Section  of  the  Federal  Board  for  Vocationsd  Training; 
Admiral  Samuel  W.    McGowan  of  the.  Navy;   and  Dr.    C.    H,    Lavinder,   United 
States  Public  Health  Service.      These  officials  had  been  invited  to   speak 
so   tha_t  the  delegates  might  have  opportunity  to  meet  and  know  the  heads 
of  departments  before  whom  they  later  would  have  occasion  to  lay  other 
claims  of  their  members, 

MANUAL  OF  PR0CEDUE3 

The  delegates  having  declared  unanimously  their  desire  to  co- 
operate in  every  way  and  to  make  their  efforts  at  cooperation  most 
effective,    the  conference  was  brought     to  a  close  by  the  presentation 
and  discussion  of  a  portfolio  known  as  the  "lifenuaJL  of  Procedure.  " 
This  portfolio  contained  most  detailed  and  explicit  directrions  for 
making  conplete  and  directing  to   the  correct  Department  all  manner  of 
inquiries  or  claims  that  might  be  directed  to   the  Bureau  of  War  Risk 
Insurance,    including  the  following   subjects: 

Allotments  and  allowances. 
Condensation  for  ex-service  men. 

Compensation  for  dependents. 

Insurance  claims. 

Inquiries  concerning  insurance 

status. 


30 

The  Director,  knowtag  ^i^%  State  War  Risk  Officers  of  thi» 
imatlcaui  Legion  would  be  askal^  |i»XsD  to  zoake  inquiries  and  prdBfi&t  claims 
for  ex-service  men  effecting  government  Bureaus  other  than  that  of  ^ar 
Eisfc  Insurance,  had  caused  to  be  added  to  this  »Manual  of  Procedure"  the 
fieme  explicit  directions  concerning  the  following  subjects: 

Refund  of  Army  Allotment. 

Payment  of  the  $50  Bonus* 

Obtaining  effects  of  Deceased  Soldiers. 

Obtaining  Liberty  Bonds  purchased  by  Deceased  Soldiers, 

Obtaining  pay  dus  Deceased  Soldiers  at  Death. 

Obtaining  Liberty  Bonds  of  Discharged  Service  Men. 

Procedure  in  case  of  Lost  Discharge  Certificate. 

Obtaining  re-issue  of  Triform  and  Equipment, 

Procuring  the  Additional  Travel  Pay. 

Procedure  to  obtain  Vocational  Training* 
A  copy  of  this  portfolio  was  furniehed  each  State  ^r  Risk  Officer  auad 
additional  copies  provided,  further  to  equip  State  Legion  Headquarters. 

Bie  Conference  had  convened* 

It  had:  (a)  investigated  most  thoroughly  the  workings  of  the 
B^areau  of  War  Risk  Insurance. 

(b)  presented  its  demands  directly  to  the  Congress* 

(c)  established  its  position  by  thorough  knowledge  of 
the  probl(SD3  and  mechanics  of  administration  of  the 
Var  Bisk  Act* 


J     .? 


di. 


(d)  "been  provided  with  a  guide  boo^  to  eoalsle  its 
mombere  to  claim  their  rights  \inder  that  Act 
in  the  most  effoctiva  manner* 
It  theroupon  concluded  its  three  days^  session  by  an 
exchange  of  assurances  with  the  Director  of  the  Brireau  of  the 
gratification  and  appreciation  of  the  co-operation  and  coiirtesies  each 
had  received  from  the  other,  their  mutual  satisfaction  with  the  Increas- 
ing understanding  of  their  association  and  the  proclamation  of  the  firm 
policy  that  each  should  lend  the  utmost  of  their  resources  to  the  db- 
ordination  of  their  mut-ual  effort  to  bring  promptly  and  happily  to 
all  ex-serrice  men  and  their  dependents  their  rights  under  the  Wat 
Eisk  Act, 


t  iJ(- 


-  7 


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:^,-!  .•    - 


33. 


KDTMWA 


Bat><a»^«n  the-   coticlusion  of  the  three— day  coi>- 
ferenc©  and  tho  issue  of  this  s-uiLrnary,  the 
Sweet  Bill,  with  certain  linitations,  was 
passed  b'J-  Congress  and  v«as  signed  by  the 
President  and  "became  a  law  on  Decetaber  24, 
1919. 

On  that  same  day,  1>065  diecks,  to  the  tot- 
al value  of  $799,580.61,  were  mailed  from 
the  Bureau,  going  to  every  state  in  the 
Union  and  representing  adjustments  in  keep- 
ing with  the  retroactive  features  of  the  new 
law  to  include  December  31,  1919* 

At  the  date  of  issue  of  this  resume',  all  of 
these  checks,  75 , OOP ,  totaling  ^0> OOP, OOP. 
representing  coniplete  adjustment  in  the 
Compensation  Section,  in  keeping  with  the 
retroactive  features  of  the  new  law,  to 
include  December  31,  1919  had  been  mailed. 
Compensation  checks  issued  this  month  and 
hereafter  will  be  paid  currently  under  the 
rates  fixed  by  the  Sweet  Bill. 


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■    ...:!     ■•>'      •■■■    ;'-    :      ■'■■1 


THE  A2!E3UCAK  LEGION 

Wjffi  RISK  IKSUHANCB  CONFERSiroa 

HSU)  AT 

yASHIliGTON,  D.  C. 

3)EC3IBER  15,   16  and  17,   1919 


DIGEST  OP 

aOTIOMS  AND  HESOEUTIOHS 

WITH  AN  ABSTRACT  OF 

BECQHOIENDATIOIES 

ON  CONGHESSIOHAL  lEGISLATION  THEN  PENDING 


MoTed«-^0?hat  a  special  coxomittee  to  be  chosen  by  ths  Chainnan 
of  the  LegislatiT©  Committee  appear  "before  Congress  to  oppose  the 
buealdng  vq?  the  War  Eisk  Insurance  B-ureatu     Carried. 

Mo-Ved — Ihat  the  Bvireau  of  War' Risk  Insairance,    the  Federal 
Boatd  for  Yocational  Education  and  the  U»   Si   Public  Health  Serrice 
be  consolidated  under  one  head«     Carried* 

MoTed — That  a  copy  of  th^  resolutions  of  the  AtaeriCan  Legion 
Convention  at  Minneapolis  be  sent  to  each  Hepresentative  iia  Congress 
and  Urn  S*   Senator*     Carried« 

Moved — That  Congress  be  req,uested  to  investigate  i«toat  hats  been 
done  by  Canada,  England  ana  the  other  Allies  in  taking  care  of  ex^ 
service  men  and  their  problems,      barriod. 

I 
,  Moved — That  the  Legislative  Conanittee  request  a  member  of  th& 
Finance  Coinmittee  of  the  U.  S.   fe^nat*  to  represent  the  ime^ibaii  Legion 
in  comoittee  and  before  the  Senate  in  advocacy  of  the  Sweet  ^d  Wason 
Bills*     Carried. 

Moved-wThat  the  Legislati^^e  Committee  urgo  upon  Congress  im- 
mediate action  \gpon  legislation  !for  the  benefit  of  ex-service  men, 
and  that  the  idea  incorporated  in  H.  E.   Bes.   405  be  approved.      Carried. 

Moved — That  Legislative  Coirimittee  consider  an  amendment  to 
Section  301  of  the  War  Eisk  Insurance  Act  to  provide  increased  com- 
pensation (along  the  lines  of  the  amendment  suggested  for  Section 
303)  for  dependent  relatives,  and  particularly  with  reference  to 
partially  and  permanently  disabled  dependents*     Carried. 

Moved»-^nd  Carried^o  insert  before  Section  303  ;of  present 
Insurance  Act  the  following  paragraph  to  be  known  as  Paragraph  308i: 

"Section  a.      In  addition  to  such  compensation  provided  by 
this  Act,   a  person  wiio  has  suffered  a  teirporary  and  total  disability 
contracted  in  th©  military  or  naval  service  shall  receive  as  a  benefit 
under  the  contract  of  insurance  carried  by   such  person,  while  the  dis- 
ability is  rated  temporary  and  total,   a  sum  at  the  rate  of  $5.75  per 
thousiand  for  every  thousand  dollars  of  insurance  carried  by  such  dis*- 
abled  person. 


4 


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lection  "b.     PrcYtdsd  that  *ih«3«  %  ♦^mporarily  totally  disa.\*|ad 
pdxtcn  ji^s  been  classified  as  pGrt3Wl«at  a»d  partial,    r^at  person  shjkll 
receire  %hat  portion  of  his   insuran«j  based  on  a  sched-Tile  t«o  "be  pre-* 
pared  by  the  BuTeau  of  War  Risk  Ins-usanes,   figiired  on  r-i^e  e;itenw  of 
loK£  ox  disabiliiiy,     T^is  schedule  may  be  revised  by  the  Buceau  of 
War  Risk  Insurance  from  tixn©  to  time.     This  section  to  be  retipoactire 
until  October  6,   1917, o 


*^4c4(4i*4c4* 


The  following  resolution  was  offered  by  Mr.  Keens  (lad^ ) 
and  adopted; 

"T7HEEE.4S,  The  President  of  the  United  States  has  again  sent 
warm  greetings  to  the  American  Legion  representatives  in  nQSi^icn  here 
in  Washington;  and 

*''fHEHEAS»  The   illness  of  Ifhe  president  has  prevented  hllQ  from 
personally  receiving  the  greetings  of  the  American  Legion  to   aie  Chief 
Executive  of  the  land;  therefore  be  it 

"RESOLVED,  That  we,  the  State  Ccamanders  of  the  American  Legion 
in  session,  extend  our  thanks  to  the  President  for  his  grv^etjings  to  us, 
and  ejqjresB  our  earnest  and  sincere  hope  that  he  nay  soon  be  restored 
to  full  health," 


^4e4c>(c*4tic4r 


On  the  second  day  of   the  Conference  Mr.   Zeene   (ind-)   offered 
the  following  resolution  ti*iich  was  unanimously  adopted: 

*'WEEEAS,   The  matter  of  War  Eis^  Insurance  and  allied  toplce 
are  project©   in  whi<^  the  AiQ©rican  Legion  in  its  recent  Mirtneapolis 
Convention  announced  its   interest  in  most  positive  terms;   and 

""WHEREAS,    The  Director  of   the  War  Risk  Insuraniar  SirreaUj    Col. 
Cholmeloy- Jones,   has   invited  ffhe  State  CcmQanders  of  tho  American 
Legion  to   conference  regarding  the  betterment  of  the  service  ^nd  has 
made  possible   this  meeting  of   the  greatest  possible  adranJ-a^a  to  all 
ex-service  men;    therefore  be  It 

*liESOL VED>    That  w»  express  our  thanks  and  appreciation  to  Col, 


it  a  rally  in  Liberty  Huli.  W&^mmdcj  evering,  December  3,7,  1919, 
^3  ffi^feting  being  ^e  final  f ea%tU» -df  t^c   three  days»   Conic  renc«» 
(according   to   the  Washington  Star  of  Deceruirer  16)    tn3  delegc^tes  sruSDonied 
up   their  views  of   the  needs  of  the  former   service  men,   as  demonstrated 
by   tht->ir   study  of   the   sitiiation  here,  as  follows: 

"Hhe  ^ason  and  Sw:et  Bills  should  be  passed  by  Congress  forthivith, 

"The  Buru'f^u.  cf  ''ar  Sisk  Insurance,   Federal  Eoard  for  Vocational 
"Kdiifj-stign  and   the  Pcblic  Koalta  Service  —  especially  th«i  sections  of 
the  last  two  agencies  dealing  with  ex-service  men  —  should  be  combined 
under  a  single  head,   and  one  representative  of  the  unified  agency   should 
be  placed   in  each  State. 

"Tha  following  irjodifi  cat  ions  regarding  insurance   shotild  be 
adopted:      Promi\2ir.s   should  be  payable  through  the  local  postoffice.     Re- 
strictions based  on  relationship  of  beneficiaries   should  be  removed. 
The  ancunt  of   the  insurance  under  the  term  and  converted  policies   should 
be  payable  at   the  option  of  the  applicant  in  a  lunp   sum  or  otherjvise, 
and  if   the  applicant  has  exercised  no  option,   then  at  the  option  of   the 
beneficiary.     A  partial  disability  benefit  should  be  paid  under  all 
policies. 

"That  all  disabled  persons  having  ^ar  Bisk  Insurance,  while   in 
tile  hospitals  or  milii.  receiving  benefits  under   the  ?'ar  Eisk  Insurance 
Act,   or  wdiile  receiving  training,   should  have  the  payment   cf  all   in- 
surance premiums  remitted  during  the  continuance  of   their  disability 
and  training.     That  all   forms  used  shall  be   simplified   so   as  to  be  made 
as  short  and  simple  as  possible*     Substantial   increases   in  all   the  pre- 
sent  rates  should  be  made.      Immediate,   liberal  and  effective  action 
should  be   taken  en  all  claims.     Persons   suffering  from  tuberculosis 
^ould  be  considered  as  totally  disabled  daring  the  continvi&nce  of  the 
disease,   and  as  compensable  accordingly.     Hospital  facilities  at  pre- 
sent provided  are   inadequate  and  Congress  should  make  a  far  more  lib- 
eral provision." 


4, 

ABSTRACT  OF  RECOMMF^TiATIO^TS  ON  S'TIIT  BILL 

Section  !•     To  "be  amended  so  as  to  provide  specifically  for 
offices  of  Actuary  and  Assistant  ichaary  and  to  fix  their  respsctire 
salaries;    the  amount  of   those   salaries,   however,    to  be  left  to    the  de- 
cision of  the  Legislative  Comnittee. 

Section  (1-a*)     To  he  amended  so   that  Section  15  of   the  original 
Act   shall   in  addition   to   the  Director,  Assistant  Directors  and  field 
«iffi^<^rG  give   to   such  other  representatives  of   the  B-ureau  as  may  be 
appointed  by  th»  Director,  authority  to   issued  subpoenas  for  witnesses. 

Section  4.     Provides  for  two  new  Sections,     Insert  the  word 
^natural"  before  the  word  "persons"  in  line  6m     (Means  to  eliminate 
"institutions.") 

Section  5,     Strike  out  all  provisions  ^idiich  authorize  payments 
to  the  chief  executive  officer  of  an  asylum  or  hospital. 

Section  7,  Amend  to  mai»  the  forfeiture  of  benefits  apply  only 
to  cases  of  enemy  aliens,  conscientious  objectors,  deserters  and  those 
guilty  of  mutiiiy,    treason  or  spying. 

Section  8,     The  question  v<iiether   this  Section  should  be  retained 
was  referred  to   the  Legislative  Committee,  with  power  to  act.      (This 
Section  provides  that  compensation   shall  be  payable  to   any  man  who  dies 
or  is  disabled  after   indiiction  by  the  Local  Board  and  before  being  ac- 
cepted and  enrolled  for  active  service,   and  further   that  any  insurance 
application  made  by  a  person  after  his  induction  by   the  Local  Board  but 
before  his  acceptance  for  active  service  shall  be  valid.) 

Sections  9.-10-10j-10-a,     Approved, 

Section  10b,     The  second  proviso  covering  deductions  from  compen- 
sation payments  on  account  of  gratuities  and  sxams  paid  under  Pension 
Laws  was  referred  to    the  Legislative  Committee,  because   there  is  now 
pending  in  Congress  a  bill  providing  for   the  allowance  of  six  months* 
pay  to   title  dependents  of  officers  of  the  Regular  Army,  deceased  in   the 
line  of  duty. 

Section  11,     Amend  to  fix  tiie  amount  of  compensation  payable  to 
those  disabled  in  the  line  of  duty  as  follows:     In  subdivision   (e)  of 
subsection  1  of  Section  302,   change  amount  from  $5.00   to  $10,00  if  man 
has  no  wife  but  has  one  child. 

Recommended  that   subsection  3  of  Section  302  be  amended  by 
lidding  a  proviso   that   the  emmeration  of  certain  injuries  constituting  per- 
manent difsability  idxaXl  rtot   exrliide  otbBT    fn^uriee   that  m&y  be    so  regarded. 


5. 

Recorcmended  that  following  provision  be  added  to   subsection  4  of 
S«.cti#«  SOB  rolalfvc   to  raortli.''.y  c??i,^Nj^if«r1;ion  w-aere  disability  i»  nkt#4. 
as  p&3?tial  and  pcj-minsnt:      '"^p7.0  7ii|j<^.  ^^-.^t  in  no  cace,   ii'respecti^e  of 
civil  occnr-ation  os  en-'pJ  cymerit. ,    sball    Ibe  inor.tli?.;>    corapennation  payable 
be  less   than  the  pnpo'tion  borne  'cy  *h.e  pi^^rc-entgge  oi    the  actual  physical 
^disability   to   the  man  payable  for  permanent   total  disability." 

Paragraphs  4,  5,    6,  7,    8  and  9  of  Section  11  approved. 

Section  12.      Uh.at  this  Section  be  rex  erred  to   the  Legislative 
Committee  with  the   suggestion   that  after   the  word  "widowhood,"  on  page 
14^   line  19,   *hei  e  be  rnsc^-ted  a  provision  x,o   ohe  effect    that   the 
children  of   the  deceased  s/iall  receive   the   in^^urance  proceeds   in  the 
event   that   tlie  wjdovy  re.iiaiTies  or  dies;    and  that  in  case  of   the 
officers  and  D.en  ^vho   io3«  their  lives  on   the  ^'Jxclop  s , "   each  shall 
be  doomed  to  have  been  granted  $5,000  insirrance.    jnloss   the  records  of 
the  Na-^'y  .'Oepartment  or  the  War  Kisk  B-oreavi  show   that  any  of  them  had 
applied  for   insur-dnce  in  a  iesjer  sim.      This  portion  of   the  Section  was 
referred  to    the  Legislative  C^ornnittee  with  the   suggestion  that   the  words 
"greater  or  less"  be  substitated  for  the  word  "less." 

Section  13.     Approved*      (it  enlarges   the  permitted  class  of 
beneficiaries.) 

Section  14  of   the  Act  provides  that  if  no  person  within  the  per- 
mitted class  of  beneficiaries   survives  the  insured:    then   there   shall  be 
paid  to   tile   insrare.d's  est=.te  an  amount  equal  to  the  commuted  value  of 
the  monthly  installments  of   *erm  Insurance.     It  A-as  recommended  that    the 
Legislative  Committee   thould.  consider   the  question  whether  or  not  a  case 
mi^t  occur   in  which   the  conmuted  value  of  the  monthly  installments  of 
Term  Insurance  -thus  paid  would  escheat   to   the  Commonwealth,   and  to  pro- 
vide against   such  escheat. 

Section  15,     Approved. 

Section  16.     Same  action  taken  as  in  the  cage  of  Section  14, 

Becommended  that   Section  17,   which  provides  for  the  payment  of 
Converted  liiaurance  in  a  lump   sum  be  amended  so  a;s  to  apply  to  Term  In- 
surance also. 

Further  recommended  that  Section  6  of  the  Wason  Bill  which  re- 
moves all  restrictions  regarding  the  beneficiaries  of  insurance,   be   in- 
corporated as  a  part  of  the  Sweet  Bill, 

Section  18.     Approved.      (Ihis  Section  provides  that  premiums  padd 
on  account  of  Converted  Insurance  shall  be  deposited  in  the  Treasury  to   the 


..  r. 


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6- 

credit  of  tho  Unitod  Statos  CrOvommont  Lifo  Insnranco  fund,  and  tliat 
thoy  shall  "bo  available  for  t^  p^fflont  of  losses,  dividonds^  pofua^ 
and  atlior  benefits.) 

Section  19.  Approved.  f?rovidos  that  any  installments  of 
allotment,  family  allov/ance,  coragpensation  Or  Torrri   Insurance,  v/hich 
have  becoTno  payable  but  v^hich  have  not  in  fact  been  paid  prior  to  the 
death  of  the  person  entitled  to  receive  them,  may  be  paid  to  tho  per- 
sonal representative  of  tho  deceased  person.) 

ABST3ACT  OF  HECCHKENDATIONS  COT  WASOIT  BILL 

Section  1,  That  tho  War  Bisk  Insurance  Act  should  provide  for 
at  least  one  regional  office  in  each  State  and  Territory  and  tho  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia- 
Section  £♦  Approved*  (!Hiis  Section  authorizes  the  Bureau  to 
advertise  in  novrspapers  and  magazines,  so  that  persons  ontifL^led  to  tho 
benefits  of  tho  \7ar  Risk  Insurance  Act  may  be  acquainted  \7ith  their 
rights  and  privileges.) 

Section  3.  That  this  Section  be  amended  so  as  to  provide  for 
the  collection  of  insurance  premiums  through  Post  Offices,  the  Hural 
Free  Delivery  system  and  Star  Routes* 

Section  4.  Approved.  (This  Section  appropriates  two  million 
dollars  to  carry  out  tho  provisions  in  Sections  1  and  2  for  the  es- 
tablishment of  regional  offices,  and  for  advertising.) 

Section  5-6.  That  those  Sections  should  be  eliminated  from  tho 
;7ason  Bill  and  incorporated  in  the  Swoot  Bill. 

Section  7.  First  Paragraph  approved.  (It  provides  that  those 
receiving  hospital  care  under  tho  Bureau,  those  receiving  vocational 
training  and  those  who  are  temporarily  totally  disabled  shall  be  re- 
lieved from  the  payment  of  premiums  on  renov/ablo  Torn  Insurance. 

Section  7.  Second  paragraph  approved  r/lth  the  recomaondation 
that  the  words  »'and  surgical"  be  added  after  tho  word  "medical",  in 
line  19.  Also  after  the  words  "enlisted  men,"  in  line  20,  add  pro- 
vision to  include  the  men  xnostered  into  the  service  and  who  have  left 
the  service  and  are  noiv  in  the  Reserves. 

Section  7.  After  line  15  insert  new  paragraph  to  bo  marked 
paragraph  (d),  as  follows- 

"Provided  further,  that  any  person  disabled  and  in  receipt  of 
conipensation  or  a  livelihood  from  the  Vocational  Board  or  under  the 
care  of  tho  Public  Health  Service  or  the  War  Risk  Insurance  Bureau  bo 


7. 

4 

CCMWidorod  as  having  had  his  policy  paid  up  from  tho  dato  of  tho 
Injury  which  incapacitated  him.  The  Diroctcr  of  v;ar  I^isk  Insuranco 
is  hereby  authorized  to  return  to  such  person  all  premiums  paid  tc 
tho  Bureau  of  t/ar  P.isk  Insurance  for  stich  insurnnco  from  the  date  cf 
his  disability,  Tho  Director  is  also  authorized,  inasmuch  as  those 
policies  will  bo  considered  as  paid  up,  to  pay  at  the  end  of  twenty 
years  to  those  mon  permanently  disabled  their  paid-up  policy." 

Soction  8.  wipproved. 


««*«4t4t*«4(«3|t 


KECEPTIOJT  AUD  DIUHEH 

STAITE  caaMAUEEas 

OF  THE 

AMERICAN  lEGKW 

AM)  THE 

DIHEdTOR  OP  THE  BUREAU 

OF  WAR  RISK  INSURANCE 

AND  HIS  ^AEP 

AT  THE 
UNITED  STATES  CAPITOL 
TOESDAr,  DECESSBEB  16,  1919 


RECEPTION  6: 30  P. 


■K•^CKi:-;^/^  TiJiSJ^C 


'Tfxr- 


Mj    -tf^VM: 


r^r-    •":■■' 


:'^zrf '     •;  •"'T«'    •'V 


■ri'U'. '■'■''■  ■ 


."^i' ';*•'' 


(T^TIiiL' 


.IT  -'i  -y: 


2. 

Ka'OPJiBLE  JMHES  E.  \JA!m(M   (   United  States  Senator  fron 
I»di&isa   ):     Gentlemen,   I  have  "been  asked  1;o  apexi  this  mof^ti-ng,  aaad, 
in  a  ceasiire,   to  preside  over  its  deliberations-     As  far  as  I  can 
discover,  the  only  reason  v«/hy  I  have  "been  ciiosen  to  fill  this  im- 
portant position  is  the  fact  that   I  am  the  only  Senator  on  either 
side  of  the  house  who  is  not  a  candidate  for  President 9    (La-ughter) 
and  in  order  to  malce  sure  of  Eoy  status,  tliat  I  might  "be  eligihle 
for  this  place,  I  nade  puhlic  a  proclamation  of  the  fact  that  I 
v/ould  not  "be  a  candidate.     But,  for  the  honor  cooof erred  upon  me 
I  am  profoundly  grateful,  for  this  is  a  gathering  of  unusual  sig- 
nificance. 

5Phe  iKerican  Legionl     what  thouglits  arise  when  those 
words  are  presented  to  our  minds.     Legion  in  number,  and  alv»?ays 
Ajnerican  in  purpose.     It  is  a  wonderful  thing  to  he  an  American 
citizen,  with  all  the  privileges  that  flow  from  the  fortunate 
possession  of  that  name.     When  we  think  of  the  history  of  the  past 
and  of  the  struggles,  trials  aood  sacrifices,  and  the  high  position 
that  we  today  occupy  among  the  peoples  of  the  world,  we  are  sure 
that  that  name  is  grander  than  the  Greeks,  nohler  than  the  Ronans, 
that  it  is  superior  to  the  French,  that  it  outshines  even  the 
English,  and  that  we  are  all  proud  of  the  great  name,  iUierioan. 
(.Applause)     And  greater  yet  is  the  title,  .Ajrerican  soldier,  "be- 
cause we  have  "been  singularly  fortunate  in  the  conf liots  in  vfcioh 
our  country  has  "been  engaged  in  the  decades  gone. 


^£!^ , 


■l         X 


••/^.  ."i:^ 


::  .1 


3. 

Too  icany  men  in  the  cent-uries  past  have  "been  "orcu^t  to- 
gether to  contend  for  conHtiost,  for  r^'Ixnd(^.T,  for  pover,  for  spoils, 
for  territorial  aggj-anf-izem^nt^  ex*  to  satisf;^;  the  ar^"'^'*^^o•as  Tibt  of 
a  Single  man,  tut  net  re  7n.  \h:<.R  B^-puMir^     Evf5ry  war  in  v;h5.Cii  O'lr 
nation  2ias  eve:?  rn,'r.--,5-'^G  hS2  "b^'^n  fou-^l'T:  fo"**  a  ao'M.'^Tii.^  pnrjpo?^.   and 
\^en  tliat  p'u:''pjre  'rn'O  vlnp-.i.'"at^.  the  men  V/snt   r-n^v  :iexe  *jn  re;?Ljn3 
again  the  bro.V-ra  -^v'.'.y^J  cf  poana  tThore  ''.he;/  .*i?.d  dr-3ppecT.  tliem  s.*^  their 
country's  cai5..> 

Tho  mpn  ot  T'-'/'^  «onvnid"!d  'or  1,:Voer'jyf,     I';  7;as  the.l*?  oTm 
liberty,  but  yov;  "^.n  tho  >.,ei.-;r  uf  j;i^-.ir.  /j'etjrloia*     G?iie  mo:,  of  ,'iC6l  ad- 
vanced the  3ca-fi.;^''d.j     'thoy,  •'';o?5  '"oulen-^.ed  fo*"  i.'berlyjj  noi;  their 
own  but  for  that  cj  another  racs  in  th.p/'.:r  cr.'n  land  and  imder  thoir 
own  flago     Tr.e  loys  -if  IG9r  VAtnC  «3Jill  h^.f^ier  the  stan^lord.     They, 
too,  contended  jt;r  i:iSov!:y,  nut   :-,he.ir  or-'n^  for  thai;  th^.y  had,;  not 
that  for  any  ochoi*  pej*son  or  peopla  Lii   jheir  cm  ^.auc?^  foi*  -imOer 
our  flag  ail  v/ere  f.'.*t.e  end  all  woi-e  e^i-^.j^l,  bnt  thsy  ccr'tarded  for 
the  liberty  of  pRoplcs  beyond  the  pa-h  cf  the  sar.,  :n  r;trr/rg9  lands, 
and  under  foreign  flags#     ITcrr,  the  boyr.  of  1917  ,  oa-liO'iin;^  tho  in- 
spiration of  all  of  our  Eighty  ppst  have  lifted  sfc:.ll  h:.'J.^e-j  the 
old  standai-rl  of  the  P^nmblio,,  for  In  the  co75L^liot  .V-si;  '^'tcs-Dd  -^jhey 
contended  for  tar.  I?j?e"-ty  of  al"'.  p.ioplos,  in  all  ?^a2.ido  and  ''index 
all  flags «     (^:xpl:..m-e..  1 

ITov;  that   ihv.  ^^'''eat  contort  5  s  ove?;,   it  3r  up   Lo  you 
boys  to  train  yot^ri^el-^ros  f:u'  citl>v^n_?=;hip  i^i  t?ic  d.?-y3  cf  peace ^  as 
you  trained  yoursa.lTea  for  «;Oi.ifli<',t  on  the  bloody  fic7.d  of  ?tr.lfe» 
It  is  quite  true,  as  your  Corsii'-ir.<?-'»r  h^ff  said  to  me.   that  you  l»avo 


i 


4. 
no  monopoly  on  patriotism,  "because  thei-e  are  yet  other*.'  tailll'-ona  of 
people  that  jtist  as  dearly  love  the  old  flag  and  ars  xz^t   as  sircere- 
ly  devoted  to  its  pi*inj.lplrs ,  "biit  after  all  you  people  icay  direct 
patriotism  and,  more  than  any  other  agency  of  force  here  5n   o-ui* 
land,  can  insTire  law  and  order  and  stability  and  the  maintenance  of 
orderly  government,  constitutional  in  form  and  representative  in 
character.  That  you  will  perform  this  great  duty  those  of  us  v;ho 
know  you  cannot  deny,  and  there  is  reason  why  this  great  organization 
for  civic  purposes  should  be  made,  because  the  Huns  and  Vandals 
among  us  are  again  on  the  march.  They  are  mald.ng  demands  tliat 
nothing  but  the  overturning  of  our  form  of  government  can  satisfy, 
and  my  friends,  if  there  be  one  thing  above  another  upon  which  we 
can  all  agree  it  is  that  there  is  room  in  this  country  for  just 
one  flag  and  only  one  f lago  (Applause* ) 

There  is  no  room  for  the  Red  Flag  of  Bolshevism.  There 
is  no  space  in  our  air  for  the  Black  Banner  of  j^narchy.  There  is 
room  only  for  that  same  old  and  glorious  flag  that  from  Yorktown  to 
the  Argonne  Forest  has  been  the  inspiration  for  every  lover  of  liberty 
and  every  lover  of  all  his  kind,  and  that  is  the  old  flag  under  which 
you  Boys  marched  to  victory,  and  when  you  brought  it  back  v;ith  no  stain 
upon  it,  except  the  blood  of  the  Boys  who  had  died  to  defend  it,  by 
common  consent  it  was  placed  above  all  other  banners,  for  it  rep- 
resented indeed  the  only  nation  which  when  LIBERTY  pleaded  her  cause, 
forgot  herself  and  all  her  selfish  aims  and  plunged  into  the  most 
titanic  strife  of  human  history  in  order  that  Liberty  might  reign  and 
be  universally  respected  among  the  sons  of  men;  and  so  v/e  honor  you 


/^r  '■':':-:M'  r.r. 


5.1 


.•f  ...  t;) 


M-:^^^:^ 


■t.     ,' 


54 

tonight  and  are  here  for  the  ptirpose  of  finding  out  what  you  want. 
That  is  the  practical  side  of  it. 

No,  it  is  not  in  order  to  tnalce  a  spojaoh .jyour  o-wn  Nation- 
al Conmander  told  me  I  should  not  make  a  speech,  and  of  course  I  will. 
not, 

I  am  delighted  as  an  Indianaian  to  stand  in  your  presence^ 
because  you  have  honored  us  more  than  any  other  State  in  the  Union,  by 
establishing  your  headquarters  in  our  capital  city  of  Indianapolis,  and 
my  friend  Doctor  Keene-  little  but  powerful-  tells  me  that  when  he  arose 
on  the  floor  to  plead  the  case  of  Indianapolis  he  started  in  by  saying 
that  the  headquarters  of  this  Institution  should  not  be  located  at  V/ash- 
ington,  because  there  is  too  much  politics  in  Washington,  and  everybody 
knew  there  v;as  no  politics  in  Indiana: 

It  is  my  first  privilege  as  well  as  ny  first  pleasure  to  pre- 
sent to  this  gathering  the  honored  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, Sipeaker  Gillett.  \'\^ere  is  he? 

(A  voice)  A.v;.O.L.,.i He  may  be  tried  by  a  Drum  major 

Court  TvTartial  and  shot  at  sunrise  for  desertion* 

If  we  have  not  the  real  Speaker  here,  we  have  a  man  who  v/a« 
a  Speaker  for  sure.   (Applause*)  I  present  to  you  that  illustrious 
American  statesman,  the  Honorable  Joseph  G.  Cannon,  Representative  in 
Congress  from  Illinois,   (Great  Applause,) 

HON.  JOSEPH  G,  CAKTOIT:  I  am  glad  to  meet  these  members  of 
the  American  Legion,  and  I  am  glad  that  you  have  selected  that  name,  for 
never  before  was  there  such  a  legion  of  men  marching  under  the  American 
flag  to  defend  the  rights  of  this  American  government  as  that  to  which 


vi:  ,?■■)/ 


■( . 


^    '■'    '! 


f    I, 


i  *'\\,t 


1  '.    .-.  V 


*.  ■  I 


1  •'    •  >      .    .    ■■'-■■     -f- 


i     ;    '         ■> 


••  !  r'  ■ 


;■         1  .:         *       iiT^ 


',  ,■■  .    ••.'•  ...»       ?  .,.■  f    ■.■.:  -     .^J  ■  «, 


•  r.  ,   ■ . .  1 


>.  /        i  '  ) 


;•  A' 


{■■•■.•'..     •  '■':", 


6, 

you  belonged;  and  never,  I  suppose  such  a  le£:ion  of  succor  to  the 
stricken  people  and  governnients  of  Earope — men   fighting  on  foreign  soil 
and  without  any  selfish  motives  of  conquest,  but  fighting  to  drive  out 
a  powerful  enemy  that  threatened  to  destroy  and  enslave. 

I  have  read  both  sacred  and  profane  history,  have  read  of 
rwars  from  the  days  of,  Abrciham  down  to  the  days  of  the  i:astor,  and  from 
the  time  of  the  Easter  down  to  the  present— and  the  old  world  has  been 
filled  with  ivars  through  these  thousands  of  years — but  I  do  not  believe 
that  history,  either  in  the  Bible  or  in  the  profane  histories,  over  be- 
fore recorded  such  a  legion  of  men  going  forth  to  fight  for  the  welfare 
cf  others,  to  sail  across  the  seas  to  fight  and  die  in  a  foreign  land 
without  a  thought  of  possessing  that  land;  carrying  with  them  not  only 
the  provisions  of  war  but  the  provisions  of  food  and  clothing  for  the 
naked  and  starving;  to  fight  the  armies  of  the  eneiLy  and  to  care  for  the 
civil  populations  left  destitute  in  the  path  of  the  invader. 

You  men  participated  in  the  greatest  crusade  for  the  princi- 
ples of  the  I.:aster  that  ever  was  known  in  the  record  of  time,  and  yet 
you  went,  not  as  crusaders  but  as  the  soldiers  of  the  United  States  to 
fight  an  enemy  of  this  Government  that  had  attacked  our  rights  and 
destroyed  our  people  and  our  property  on  the  high  seas.  You  went  into 
the  v;ar  at  the  conmiand  of  your  Government  to  which  you  owed  allegiarice, 
to  defeat  mi   enemy  that  had  made  war  on  us,  but  in  the  going  in  and  in 
the  fighting  you  showed  to  the  world  the  best  spirit  of  /jnerican  man- 
hood and  iimerican  ideals.  You  are  the  men  responsible  for  the  high 
ideals  that  v;ere  eschibited  to  the  people  of  Europe,  It  was  not  the 
ideals  of  the  Government  so  much  as  it  was  the  ideals  of  the  itoerican 


.'.}"      '• 


..l-.'.:../ 


■■:,•'% 


Vv 


710  ■■ 


,.     <.v/^-> 


■!■?,•»      'j 


• 


I  ."'.'I:  -■• 


;j'  "<■ 


7. 

soldiers,  and  to  the  soldiers  should  be  given  this  mead  of  high 
praise.   (Applause.) 

The  American  Legion  did  in  the  years  1917  and  1918 
for  the  -wrorld  what  the  Union  soldiers  did  for  the  countrjr  in  1861 
to  1865*  They  of  the  Civil  War  saved  the  Union  from  division  and 
destruction.  But  those  men,  the  veterans  of  the  Civil  War--E©.ny 
of  them  only  boys  -when  they  entered  the  "smr — did  something  more 
than  save  the  Union  in  "war.  They  saved  it  in  the  peace  T?hich  follcw- 
ed. 

The  men  T7ho  had  been  in  the  amies  that  faced  each  other 
in  battle,  men  of  the  Blue  and  the  Gray,  became  the  conservators  of 
progress,  and  prosperity  and  of  conservation  in  building  up  the  "roaste 
places  of  Tvar  in  peaceful  pursuits.  They  trere  the  men  "whh  took  the 
lead  in  business  and  politics,  in  profession^-l  life  and  in  Trorks  of 
charity.  They  "were  the  men  who  had  the  energy  and  the  confidence  in 
their  own  ability  to  do,  and  they  took  the  lead  in  every  great  develop- 
ment of  industry  and  government  policy. 

Never  "nas  there  such  development  in  airy  country  at  any  time 
equal  to  that  in  this  country  from  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  down  to 
the  beginning  of  this  great  World  War,  'with  cur  population  increasing 
from  less  than  thirty  millions  to  more  than  100,000,000,  and  our  nater- 
ial  wealth  from  1 16, 000, 000, 000  to  more  than  $250,000,000,000,  while  the 
increase  in  our  development  from  the  ideal  and  the  spiritual  point  of 
vie^,  in  caring  for  the  destitute,  the  lame,  the  halt,  and  the  blind,  -mas 
such  as  the  world  never  witnessed  before.  Why,  I  have  spen  more  progress 
in  civilization  from  the  hune-ne  point  cf  viei?  in  my  four  score  years  than 
was  recorded  from  the  days  of  Moses  to  the  day  that  I  was  born. 


••^■"..r  "'.l  w ::;.•;«;:•,. -ji  '■::,'i'   '-i-v'*  }■-•} 


•  !  rf  ;    "■  ..: 


■.k  .,./;V£v/   T^tij^ 


'■:y''U  •ft^'-i'' 


'■  u' 


'•■!'  ■     i;.:-;  ll    I 


8, 

And  ^hat  I  \5ant  to  impress  upon  ycu  is  the  fact  t:ia± 
4ihe  men  who  fcuglit  to  save  the  country  in  tho  stress  of  the  Civil 
War  T/ere  the  sane  rjien  v;ho  fought  ^jith  ideas  to  save  the  country  in 
peace,  to  huild  up  a  better  and  more  united  nation  than  -,7e  had  had 
before.  And  that  reminds  me  that  saving  a  country,  like  saving  an 
individual,  is  not  simply  a  great  and  heroic  effort  in  one  struggle, 
"but  a  continuous  effort  through  the  years.  (Applause,) 

You  will  remember  that  -Then  the  Cliildren  of  Israel  v;ore 
freed  from  bondage  and  led  cut  cf  the  land  of  Egypt,  they  thought 
their  salvation  had  been  made  sure;  they  forgot  the  teachings  and  the 
commands  of  their  loader,  and  began  to  disagree,  to  quarrel,  to  -yandcr 
after  f?ilse  gods,  to  make  idols  of  their  cv;n  to  ■. /or ship,  and  thoy 
wandered  in  the  wilderness  for  forty  years.  Ilaroj'-  cf  them  never  reach- 
ed the  Promised  Land,  and  they  v/ho  finally  did  reach  Canaan,  after 
fighting  and  destroying  other  peoples,  h -d  to  come  b;:ck  to  the  con- 
servative policies  cf  Uofjgs  r^nd  follow  ^.gcin   his  teachings,  before 
they  wore  permitted  to  enter  and  idcssoss  the  land. 

Our  soldiers  of  the  Civil  War  did  not  have  to  learn  the 
lessons  of  the  Children  of  Israel.  lEhey  did  not  gc  cut  to  dostrcy 
but  tc  build  up.  Shoy  took  the  load  in  business  and  in  politics  -Jid 
they  were  conservative,  mere  conservative  than  had  been  their  fore- 
bears vTho  had  not  knovm  the  stress  of  war,  more  prcgressive  along 
conservative  lines,  and  they  were  the  builders  of  railroads  and 
bridges,  of  greater  steamships;  they  opened  the  urines  and  wore  in 
the  forefront  cf  every  movement • 

!I!hey  filled  the  seats  in  the  House  and  Senate,  and  when 


i: 


i  i 


. ;  -  '  i  1-    '.'l 


9. 

I  came  to  Congress  we  had  half  a  hundred  men  who  had  v/om  the  Blue,  on 
one   side  of  the  House,  and  lialf  a  hundred  men  who  had  v.orn  the  Gray,  on 
the  other  side,  While  they  scrapped  over  war  issues  they  worked  together 
for  safe  and  sane  policies  that  would  "better  help  all  the  people,  along 
well-defined  lines;  this  and  constr^jctive  policies,  to  benefit  not  a 
class,  but  the  whole  people  of  all  sections. 

That  is  v/hat  I  expect  to  see  in  this  American  Legion.  You 
boys  have  seen   the  world  in  war,  and  you  will  better  see  the  ways  of  peace 
for  the  world  and  for  our  own  country,  than  the  men  who  remained  at  home 
to  read  and  dream  of  the  things  which  you  were  v/orking  out  in  the  caldron 
of  war. 

You  are  young,  courageous,  enterprising,  thoughtful,  sympathetic; 
you  have  had  the  ^:perience  that  does  not  come  to  the  ordinary  man  in  a 
life  time  for  you  have  seen  the  world  in  destruction,  and  you  ?;ill  know 
better  hov/  to  rebuild  in  a  practical  wayo  You  v;ill  not  get  the  cart  be- 
fore the  horse  in  your  endeavors,  but  will  know  hov;  to  rely  on  old  and 
established  principles.  You  will  soon  be  taking  the  lead  in  business  and 
politics,  and  your  business  enterprises  will  not  be  for  yourselves  alone 
but  the  whole  community,  on  the  theory  that  intelligent  selfisimess 
has  always  made  the  world  move,  and  will  continue  to  do  so. 

You  will  take  your  places  in  the  city,  county,  state  and 
National  Government,  in  the  Legislatures  and  in  Congress,  and  I  am  sat- 
isfied that  with  yo\ir  war  experience  you  will  not  move  until  you  know 
that  the  move  will  get  to  some  definite  objective,  just  as  you  did  in 
the  army.   (Applause.) 

You  will  apply  the  same  intelligence  and  the  same  method  that 


[^r\.rf   "■;   ■:.':■ 


■imi-    .•■;^^^": 


..,  u  f 


10. 
you  tLsed  to  defeat  tiie  Geriaan   army,  to  govern  this  country  and  the 
t-jL3i-nes3  and  industry  of  the  cour.iry.  when  yoa  tal^e  our  places  in 
the  na]!'^?  of  Coizgrisss^   or   at  'iaptainr->  of  ind'a^try  a::ic.  oonjaerce  and 
a^-icvil  t-ure.  You  will  rem-uriboT   that  i70V   wer3  j^oloierf5  of  the  United 
States  and  not  of  the  77oj-lr«.^  r=Gr.d  that  ycu  are  3g.«.in  citizens  of  the 
United  Stabes  ^^/ith  your  inTt^r'sts,  your  affect loiie,  and  your  life 
work  hero.  ;,nd  vfr^i^  .  ycx-r-   .'••urcnpa^.hios  and  yo-ii  help  nay  again  go 
Gilt  to  th-r   v»x;rld  m  time  of  ^reat  need,  you  will  find  your  first 
d-jties  are  to  the  Wation  of  T/hiich  you  are  a  part,   (Applause.) 

You  will  not  follo\7  after  false  gods  of  world  unity  with- 
out boundaries  and  a  conglomsrate  flag,  but  v/ill  devote  your  first 
efforts  to  the  Nation  of  which  you  are  a  part,  and  you  will  follow 
the  same  flag  that  you  followed  through  the  ^Irgonne  v/hen  you  drove 
the  Germans  out  of  France*. 

I  believe  that  you  of  all  men  will  follow  the  admonition 
of  Paul  the  Apostle,  "But  if  any  provide  not  for  his  own  and  especially 
for  those  of  his  own  house  he  hath  denied  the  faith,  and  is  worse  than 
an  infidel*"  This  Nation  is  your  house;  you  went  to  v/ar  to  protect 
it,  and  you  will  provide  for  its  safety  and  unity  in  the  future. 

God  bless  you  and  the  jimerican  Legion. 

(Great  and  prolonged  applause.) 

SMATOR  V/ATSON:  One  time  at  a  banquet  a  fe.v  years  ago, 
when  I  lived  with  Uncle  Joe  Cannon,  and  he  said  I  never  missed  a 
meal  and  never  paid  a  cent  (Laughter),  one  of  his  enthusiastic  friends 
after  a  banquet  nominated  him  for  President,  and  when  he  came  to  res- 
pond he  looked  about  and  said,  "Nov,  as  to  this  nomination  for  President, 


■);; .:; 


.    Ji.)    U'-.i. 


n:i 


■%-:■  ^yi." 


r-'.  I    '     r 


.'.  tr :?: 


I  believe  th^t  my  party  might  go  very  much  further  and  do  a  great 
deal  worse,  and  d-d  If  I  don't  believe  they  will. »•   (laughter*} 
And   they  did,   (Applause) 

Having  heard  from  the  Nestor  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, it  becomes  ny  pleasure  now  to  introduce  a  man  from  the  other 
end  of  the  Capitol,  one  who  has  been  long  in  the  service,  tried  and 
.'4rue;  and  with  all  due  respect  to  everybody  else,  I  think  the  hs^rd- 
est  worker  in  either  branch  of  the  American  Congress-Senator  Heed 
Smoot,  of  Utah,   (Great  Applause.  } 

SENATOR  REED  SMOOT  (Utah)  i  ilr.  Chairman  and  Fellow 
Americans X   I  have  been  a  member  of  the  Pension  Committee  cf  the 
Senate  from  the  first  day  I  entered  the  Senate  until  the  present 
time.   Never  has  there  been  a  moment  since  I  entered  public  life 
that  I..have  lost  sight  of  the  men  who  saved  this  Nation;  and  when 
I  say  "men  who  saved  this  Nation,"  I  mean  the  Boys  who  responded 

i 

to  defend  our  coimtry  in  *61  to  '65,  and  the  Boys  who  responded 
when  the  call  was  made  in  the  '9C*s,   I  never  look  upon  the  ^Id 

veterans  and  I  never  see  that  wonderful  little  button  that  is  worn 
by  them  all  but  that  I  feel  a  reverence  for  and  feel  that  I  owe 

much  to  them.   And  tliat  is  why  I  have  always  been  found  with  the 
men  who  were  willing  to  pay,  by  way  of  a  pension,  at  least  a  pit- 
tance to  the  men  who  fought  for  you  and  for  me  and  for  our  country 
and  our  flag,   I  have  often  been  accused  of  being  perfectly  will- 
ing tD  appropriate  money  out  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States 
to  pay  pensions  to  the  Civil  War  veterans,   I  have  never  been  ashamed 
of  it,   I  think  the  recognition  of  their  services  came  too  late,  and 


■  fi:>  'i  ■>  '■<;■;.:-.■:■!.  no.'  ;.■;-■>    :^:1'J    ;'>  i-idlttt.jfa  fi  no-o    ,>vi;f;;  i        i u?^  . .  •  i  .;;;, s. 


'    I 


^««^:^ 


;.'..? 


..••■  ,t.>vi  ■'.'■.:■>:■:   vv,-:.  :i         ..;.;:;: i;? I  vv  a^V.    Civj.V    > 


, . .  r  i- 


•■'..;■; 


J  '■•    '.■  ,  > ' 


f  ."< 


12. 

I  think  the  people  of  the  United  States  were  very  dilatory  indeed 
in  grantir.g  them  a  partial  relief.  And  as  far  as  I  em   concerned  I 
want  the  people  of  tha  United  States  to  know  that  I  feel  tiiat  the 
United  States  Goverrment  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude,  that  every  rcan 
and  woman   should  recognize,  to  the  boys  who  fought  the  recent  World 
War,  and  it  should  be  shown  by  our  Govenurient  in  a  substantial  v/ay, 
and  particularly  to  those  that  have  been  woTicded  in  any  way.  Not 
only  do  I  tliink  the  soldier  hiTEseif  should  be  takan  care  of,  but  I 
tiiink  his  loved  ones  should  be  rezaembered.  And  that  is  why  you 
have  always  found  me  upon  the  fioor  of  the  Senate  pleadirg  for 
their  cause,  offering  legislation  for  their  lelief,  and  in  a  part- 
ial way  being  successful  in  securing  the  passage  of  tliat  class  of 
legislation. 

Tines  are  quite  different  from  what  they  were  a  few  years 
ago.  I  think.  Brother  Cannon,  that  civilization  has  advanced  rapid- 
ly within  the  last  fifty  years,  and  what  it  took  to  make  a  man  comfort- 
able or  a  woTnan  happy  then  is  totally  inadequate  now. 

Now,  I  want  to  be  perfectly  frank,  as  I  try  to  be  in  all 
things.  I  have  no  desire  at  all  to  misrepresent  my  position  upon  any 
question  whatever,  and  if  I  had  the  ability  1  would  just  as  soon  lay 
bare  to  all  the  world  my   thoughts  and  let  vhem  read  rpy  heart,  not  only 
upon  public  questions  but  my  private  life.  I  say  now  that  whatever 
legislation  is  necessary  to  take  care  of  the  soldiers  of  the  recent 
war  who  have  been  wounded,  those  that  are  suffering  in  any  way  and 
their  loved  ones  left  behind,  should  pass  Congress  at  the  earliest 
date  possible. 


f     •  ■  .•  •  .•;■  ♦ 


'    »- 


■'  •      ■Cl'':"- 


i' ■-,■'■■' 


'..  ij 


»?  .. ;  w 


•:  ^  i. 


■■■'!       >.'V       t 


-13- 
I  happen  to  be  a  memtsr  of  the  sub-oonmittee  of  the  Finance 
Coramittee  that  had  the  War  Risk  Insurance  legislation  :.r  hpnd.   You  re- 
member i.t  had  to  pcss  very  quickly,  and  I  recog.:i:lLed  f.io  fact  then,  as 
we  all  imist  admit  now,  tl'.at  it  v/as  ai^ythin^  but  complete,  Xt  has  done 
fairly  vh^li,   and  7.  roco^ii^e   tiiat  it  must  be  amendad  and  I  recognize 
that  the  amendment  that  will  be  made  shortly  will  on]y  be  a  stop  among 
the  man:/  that  will  yet  be  taken  to  improve  legislation  of  that  character. 

Now,  I  have  heard,  from  many  parts  of  the  country,  particu- 
larly from  Illinois,  origir.atlng,  I  su:?por!e,  in  an  article  that  v;as  pub- 
lished fn   one  of  the  papers  in  CSiicago  —  that  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States  through  its  sub-comrdttee  having  present  lr».f;i  slab  ion  in  ohar.'ge 
was  going  ^o  see  that  the  legislation  was  no^.   e.-ia.cl-e;d  inro  law.  Now,  I 
will  say  to  you  gentlemen  here  tonight  there  has  "ueezi  no  possible 
chance  of  bringlrg  it  before  the  Senate  up  to  this  time.  I  have  it 
ready  and  it  tvill  bo  reported  to  the  Senate  at  the  first  opportunity. 
V/hen  the  Sr^eet  5ill  passed  the  House  and  came  to  the  Senate,  wo  had 
the  Peace  Treaty  before  the  Senate,  and  nothiiig  could  have  taken  pre- 
cedence over  that*  You  know  the  whole  story  without  my  tf.l/i}ig  it  to 
you.  And  I  want  to  say  to  you  that  just  as  scon  as  this  se£,sion  was 
entered  upon  the  Railroad  Bill  was  taken  up:  in  fact,  it  was  made  the 
unfinished  business  before  the  close  of  the  la^it  ;:ies3ion.  ^rA   all 
recognized  the  fact  that  that  legislation  shcald  be  enacted  before  the 
first  day  of  January,  if  possible;  and  I  want  to  say  that  at  ?^ome 
time  during  this  week,  if  it  becomes  absolutely  kn.own  that  it  cannot 
pass  by  the  end  of  the  week,  I  shall  ask  unanimous  consent  of  the 
Senate  for  the  immediate  consideration  of  the  Sweet  Bill. 


Ow-  oijc   *>; 


C-:r 


i       '\''    I'Vi  .-■'!: 


-jo::(;r 


:t  -n.  ■ 


rjd*:)- 


14. 

Ve  did  not  thizOc  ttet  it  nas  ^oixg  to  tabs  so  long  a  tine 
';o  pass  the  Bailroad  Bill*    We  Isept  hoping  and  trusting  that  it 
would  get  out  of  the  WDjy,  and  I  toevv  that  if  I  reported  the  bill  and 
put  it  vtpm.  the  calendar  that  I  would  not  have  nearly  as  good  a 
chance  of  having  it  acted  upon  at  once  as  if  reported  isilien  I  oould 
ask  unanimous  consent  for  izm^iate  consideration  of  it;  and  I 
sliall  trust,  if  I  ask  that,  that  there  \7ill  not  "be  a  senator  of  the 
Iftiited  States  v/ho  will  refuse  to  giant  it. 

AH  I  have  in  bct  heart  is  to  do  that  which  will  be  for 
the  best  interests  of  the  soldiers  \iho  have  served  our  country,  and 
the  loved  ones  who  have  died  for  our  flag;  and  I  also  know  that  there 
nay  be  some  that  Will  not  be  satisfied  with  the  legislation  that  will 
.  be  enacted.     It  is  an  jyipossibility  to  please  everybody*     What   I  deexD 
to  be  the  general  sentinaent  of  the  members  of  the  Legion  I  shall  un- 
dertake to  put  into  legislative  form  rjid  siQ)port  it  with  all  the  power 
at  EST  connand,     (Applause.) 

I  think  it  is  perhaps  due  me,  and  I  loiow  that  it  is  due 
my  friedd,  the  Director  of  the  War  Hisk  Bureau,  to  speak  vqpan  that 
subject  of  the  workings  of  the  War  Risk  Btireau  a  little  toni^t.     I 
do  so  because  I  know  that  the  soldier  boys  are  deeply  and  vitally 
interested  in  it.       I  do  so  becaajise  the  letters,  not  hundreds  of  let- 
ters but  thousands  of  letters,  that  I  receii^e  from  one  end  of  this 
country  to  the  other  demonstrate  to  me  beyond  the  question  of  a 
doubt  that  there  has  been  great  dissatisfaction  with  the  administration 
of  the  War  Risk  Bureau.    And  in  passing  I  want  to  say  that  there  is 
no  question  of  a  doubt  but  that  Col.  Gholmeley- Jones,  the  present 


:     ■■■:!■   :  :  ■    'r-  ::•'•£ c 


M^- 


.1  '- 


5   J 


it^-i)    -IP-V:     A.^ 


:'»•.■■)'.■ 


r.u   vn  . 


rfu 


:  r 


^ 


t   ., 


,    ■,:  /      .;r.   t  :     >    .•-.  •■:  ■■•     ,  .  '■.::  ■^.    .Lit   '         .■    •     . 

'  -.vt   -..vK;"    ^c:-    I    ;.••■■    ;    r  ;        ;  •  ,    fa  ,  t  v   JV;-f  fr.:  ■   ., 

■-:        i,;"!:  J X ■-■:.' r    v?;        :   ■  ..   fx:ii^.'"<j   ^cT   ?'v;   C.Ciw    ••■'••{7 


',>• 


*.    >;    ."v:v    ■■c  '■  • 


r  --I   ■'■    rj-f(;,    , 


"•.■  v   .''cr.:;}!^  'jorl^^c 


orv:- 


.y.':;'V/^  /i': 


■  r-rf/i-,:  .v:i''. 


-15- 
Director,  has  vastly  improved  the  administration  of  that  Bureau.   (Ap- 
plause.) But  it  is  not  functioning  as  it  ought  to  do  today  and  I  say 
that  "because  of  the  fact  that  it  has  ocme   to  me  from  so  manj%  many 
sources.  And  if  I  introduce  a  "bill  for  the  abolition  of  that  Bureau 
it  will  he  with  only  one  thought  in  my  mind,  and  that  is  that  the 
soldiers  and  thsir  loved  ones  will,  under  the  reorganization  of  the 
work  now  done  tfy   that  Bureau,  receive  "better  and  quicker  service. 

I  have  not  wanted  to  introduce  a  "bill  of  that  character 
until  I  had  a  chance  to  tell  the  Senate  Just  what  I  had  in  mind  and 
just  \*iy  I  feel  that  the  working  of  the  reorganS  zation  v/ill  be  of  ad- 
vantage to  every  soldier  and  to  the  Govemmont  itself.  And  as  I  have 
stated  many  a  time,  if  I  can't  prove  to  every   Senator  that  that  can  be 
done,  I  do  not  want  them  to  support  the  measure. 

Now,  I  have  just  made  one  investigation,  pretty  thorough- 
ly, and  I  wanted  to  bring  this  to  your  attention  tonlghb.  There  are 
many  other  things  that  I  could  speak  about,  but  my  short  statement  will 
give  you  an  idea,  and  I  want  you  not  to  pass  jndgroent  upon  the  merits 

of  the  question  until  I  can  make  a  full  and  complete  statement  of  what 
I  expect  to  accomplish  and  the  plans  to  carrjr  che  ideas  into  effect. 

Now,  in  the  first  place,  I  want  to  transfer  all  the  al- 
lotments and  allowances  to  the  War  and  Navy  Depar  iTnents ,  In  order  to 
do  that,  if  the  Sweet  Bill  becomes  a  law,  which  I  know  it  will,  all 
the  employes  that  those  two  departments  ask  me  to  fu^m^.sh  them,  or 
that  the  Government  will  be  askvOd  to  furnish  extra  will  be  two  thous- 
and five  hundred,  3*he  overhead  is  complete  today;  the  information  must 
come  from  those  departments  today,  and  it  seemed  to  me  that  that  is  the 
proper  place  for  the  allowances  and  allotments  to  be  distributed  from. 


T-; 


':.]  ■  ;■>  -;:  ' 


ij.  :■'('. i     :'f 


.,  r 


,-'>   •  > 


::i. 


i-i^y   'J'.  :■•   ••  .  !■    ' 


.>    vu:j-:;  •v■^^>l 


':-;:,i.^.   :•:;•;»    .-:    ■•f.:^! 


16. 
If  the  Sweet  Bill  becomes  a  law  two  thousaM  einplqyes  v/ill  "be  suf- 
ficient.    I  want  to  take  the  conrpensation  section  and  transfer  it  to 
the  Bureau  of  Pensions.     Conrpensation  means  nothing  more  than  a  pen- 
sion;  it  is  true  that  the  present  administration  shied  at  the  word 
"pension,"  "but  I  never  did.     I  don»t  care  what  you  call  it;     it  is  a 
gratuity  to  men  who  have  earned  it,  and  it  is  just  as  ted  to  call  it — 
if  there  be  any  wickedness  in  it,  which  there  is  not  —  a  compen- 
sation as  it  is  to  call  it  a  pension.     All  that  they  woiild  require 
would  be  two  thousand  employes,  and  there  isn't  any  question  of  a 
doubt  but  that  they  could  get  along  with  one  thousand  under  the  cir- 
cumstances as  I  have  outlined. 

The  insurance  I  would  like  to  see  transferred  to  the  Post 
Office  DepartiTBnt.     Every  soldier  boy  should  have  a  right  to  go  to  any 
post  office  in  this  coimtry  and  pay  his  premium  upon  his  insurance  and 
take  a  receipt  insrediately,  no  letters,  no  nothing  other  than  paying 
his  premiums.     And  the  Postmaster  General  tells  me  that  there  isn't 
any  question  of  a  doubt  but  that  all  he  will  require  is  three  thous- 
and eiij)loyes  at  the  utmost. 

ITow,  when  this  is  accomplished,    I  \«ant  to  say  that  the  very 
outside  number  will  be  only  seven  thousand  five  hundred  employes.     On 
the  22d  day  of  October,   1919,  the  War  Risk  Bureau  had  fifteen  thousand 
three  hundred  and  fourteen  eniployes.     I  haven't  any  doubt  but  that 
Director  Cholme ley- Jones   is  going  to  decrease  that  number.     I  will 
tell  him  one  thing,   if  he  does  not  he  will  never  get  an  appropriation 
to  pay  for  their  salaries.     I  want  to  see  you  cut  them  without  any 
legislation,  down  to  ten  thousand  at  least.     That  can  be  done,  can't  it? 


•-•■■.v 


••    r^'y.'.v. 


'.*■&.:/■>  '    .:o    ",;?'♦.•.  .', 


.  ■■   /.»/»•.'*.: 


':     U^.,: 


:iz 


s  .L':Kf 


■1    '.? 


■', .' I  ..-*  I ( 


i     J 


»..  '.>  f     h, 


17. 

DIHECd'QR  CHOLMELET- JONES ;   Well,  it  will  t>e  ten  thousand 
by  the  first  of  January, 

SEMTOR  SMOOTr   Good,   We  have  accomplished  that  much, 
anyhow.   But  it  is  not  only  a  question  of  the  employees,   I  haven't 
the  time,  nor  would  you  want  to  listen  to  all  the  details.   All  I 
want  to  say  to  the  soldiers  at  the  present  time  is  this:   I  want 
legislation  that  will  cause  you  the  very   least  possible  trouble,  as 
well  as  the  soldiers'  beneficiaries,  and  the  loved  ones  of  the  soldiers 
who  have  died.   I  want  them  to  have  the  very  least  trouble  possible. 
OJhe  Government  must  see  that  whatever  they  owe  to  you  must  come  into 
your  hands  with  just  as  little  delay  as  possible,  with  just  as  little 
trouble  as  possible,  and  the  organization  to  accomplish  this  is  what 

I  want.   And  if  the  War  Risk  Bureau  is  that  organization  and  it  can 
be  demonstrated,  well  and  good  for  the  War  Risk  Bureau j   If  it  is  not, 

I  am  for  whatever  legislation  it  takes  to  put  the  soldiers  and  their 

dependents  in  the  position  named. 

Now,  that  is  the  position  that  I  occupy  and  that  is  all 

that  I  have  in  my  heart. 

I  will  say  to  the  Director  that  having  five  or  six  jackets 

fol"  the  record  of  a  soldier  is  all  wrong.   And  I  don't  blame  I,Ir, 

Oholmeley- Jones  for  it;  it  was  started  that  way,  and  started  for  a 
certain  purpose.   Never  at  the  suggestion  of  anybody  who  had  carried 
on  a  great  system  of  work  like  that  being  carried  on  by  that  Bureau. 
But  we  seem  to  have  gotten  into  a  habit  here  in  Washington  of  creat- 
ing Bureaus  and  Divisions,  as  many  as  possible,  and  then  each  Division 
or  Bureau  must  see  to  it  that  it  has  more  employ ees   than  any  other. 


/  .• 


•>  5  .      »  .• 


..I 


r  M. -.■•:■-•      t 


I    ':  ••    'v  -.f  i.; 


..         f  M  , 


•'■:.T    .;; 


!  •   ;'••■>   ■  fi,' 


i"  ■  f  ■-  r  r    •>  '    ;i  •■  .  .     ,.  -7    ':.l.y. 


^ci:  .^ 


■).^'    >.i.t 


,■;■.-'     ■    .t    ■ 


'<*.'.'   ; 


)  '• 


f  ?  t'.: 


•::..    •)•   ; 


'     •'/ <  I        ;i  ';   i    '.:■■■-;     :  > :  ,  y, }  ]    -y-w    ■<:  ■.     ,;:.-.    i  .f  ■  •.     • 
r-t  ■  .    i      -•:-,  .'   :;       .      .1..    .;{     i->.;;:r    -     :.     . 

..     ■•■•  :■  ...:;•;>.  .s;  -     -.  '.  \     '.  ■:    •  .v  ,"         ,      .',   -i: 


i/ra/.  'i>0 


*■»•/ 


.       •;.?      •;■ 


i;r,'    . 


-18- 
Nov7,  we  must  recognize  this,  thet   never  for  a  quarter 
of  a  century  to  come  will  the  expenses  of  this  Government  be  less 
than  ^p3, 500, 000, 000  a  year,  I  guess  Senator  Watson  and  the  others 
will  remember  that  I  made  that  statement  on  the  floor  of  the  Sen- 
ate when  the  last  amendment  to  the  Revenue  Bill  was  before  the 
Senate.  Immediately,  I  was  called  to  account  hy   the  (Treasury  De- 
partment; it  was  said  that  I  was  talking  for  political  advantage 
and  I  was  maldng  a  political  speech  when  I  warned  the  United  States 
of  that  fact.  Now,  I  want  to  say  to  you  good  people  that  I  was 
perfectly  resigned  to  the  estimates  for  the  fiscal  year  1921  to 
amount  to  four  billions  of  dollars,  but  I  was  totally  unprepared 
to  have  them  reach  over  five  billion  dollars.  And   I  think  I  am 
perfectly  safe  in  saying  that  no  five  billion  dollars  will  be  ap- 
propriated to  cover  them. 

The  American  people  never  object  to  paying  taxes  that 
are  absolutely  necessary  to  carry  on  their  GrOvemment.  They  never 
have,  they  never  will.   The  jimerican  people  have  never  objected  to 
paying  the  amount  of  tax  that  was  necessary  to  pay  the  pensions 
that  have  been  paid  to  our  veterans  of  our  former  wars,  ind  they 
are  never  going  to  object,  and  I  will  say  to  the  soldiers  here 
tonight  that  I  am  going  to  undertake  to  see  that  your  loved  ones 
are  taken  care  of,  and  I  don't  care  what  it  costs,  i  was  asked 
yesterday  what  this  bill  v;ill  cost  the  Government  of  the  united 
States.   I  said  all  that  a  person  can  do  would  be  to  get  an  esti- 
mate of  it,  but  I  don't  care  what  it  costs,  it  was  right,  and  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  is  not  so  poor  that  it  can't  pay 


,   \ 


19 

its   just  obligations. 

Not;,  ilr,   Ghairman,   I  did  not  come  hero  to  spoak.     Mr. 
Glide  told  mo   today  that  v/e  were  going  to  corns  here  and  shake 
hands  and  meot  one  another,     I  want  to  apologize   for  the   length 
of  time   I  have   taken,     I  v.'ant  to  see  the  administration  of  the 
law  improved.      I  will  do  anything  to  "bring  it  about,     I  v/ork  about 
sixteen  hours  every  day  of  the  year  and  I  am  perfectly  willing 
to  give  another  hour  for  this  purpose  every  day  in  the  year. 

I  want  the  soldiers  to  understand  that  the  rijmor  that 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States  is  going  to  block  this  legis- 
lation;  that  they  are  opposed  to  it  and  that   it  is  to  bo  side- 
tracked,  is  not  true,      I  don*t  know  how  long  I  will  be   in  public 
life,  and  I  say,  as  far  as  I  ara  personally  concerned,   I  don't 
care.     I  have  given  18  years  of  the  very  cream  of  my  life  to  the 
public  service.     I  am  perfectly  willing  never  to  corae  back  to 
the  Senate  again,  I  care  not  as  far  as  I  am  personally  concerned, 
but  as  long  as  I  am  here  I  am  going  to  do  that, which  I  think  in 
my  conscience   is  right,  and  I  am  always  going  to  be  found  on  the 
side  that  defends  our  Government,  our  Constitution,  and  that 
fla^  and  all  that  it  represents,     I  do  not  propose  to  change   it 
for  a  world's  flag,     The  Stars  and  Stripes  is  good  enough  for  me 
and  I  know  it  is  good  enough  for  you, 

SENATOR  WATSON:    I   think,   gpntleraen,   regardless 
of  the  machinery  tJ&at  may  be  employed  that  the  result  will  be 
satisfactory,   because  the  American  people  understand  that  a 
nation  that  will  not  defend  its  defenders  and  protect  its  pro- 


il  ' 


-20- 
teotors  is  in  the  tliroes  of  disintegration,  and  the  people  also 
understand  that  every  inducement  that  can  possibly  be  throv/n 
out  to  young  men  to  join  the  array  in  defense  of  our  institutions 
in  the  day  of  peril  or  in  the  hour  of  storm  and  crisis  should  be 
thrown  out,  and  nobody  need  have  any  doubt  as  to  where  the  ilmer- 
ican  Congress  stands  on  that  question  with  reference  to  the 
soldiers  of  the  T^'ar  of  1917. 

It  is  a  very  great  pleasure  to  me  at  this  time  to 
present  one  of  your  awn  brothers,  one  vihom  you  honored  with  the 
position  of  National  Commander^  just  elected  at  your  great  con- 
vention in  Minneapolis,  a  young  man  of  couragb,  a  young  man  of 
patriotism,  and  a  young  man  v/hd  proposes  to  give  the  best  that  is 
in  him  to  fUi*ther  the  high  interests  and  the  noble  purposes  of 
this  magnificent  orgaiiization.  This  organization  in  v/hich  I 
believe,  as  I  believe  in  my   own  existence,  is  the  one  that  is 
to  conserve  the  great  interests  of  the  people  of  the  United  States 
and  preserve  their  institutions  to  succeeding  generations  v/ith 
their  splendors  undiminished. 

I  have  the  pleasure  of  presenting  National  Commander 
D'Olier.   (Applause.) 

CaiMANDER  IHANKLIN  D'OLIBR:  m-.  -Chairman,  Gentlemen 
of  the  Senate  and  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  comrades  of 
the  Walter  Eeed  Hospital,  Comrades  of  the  i^erican  Legion: 

Ten  months  ago  last  night  a  group  of  twenty  men  dis- 
cussed the  question  of  a  veteran  organization.  It  v/as  decided 
that  evening  to  call  a  conference  in  Paris  one  month  later,  or 


•'^    .•■•>;:.-  I 


Itiy  ':'■  ::» 


21. 

March  15,  At  this  conference  there  were  to  be  representatives 
from  all  divisions  in  France,  sections  of  S*  0#  S.  and  G.  H.  Q. ,  for 
the  purpose  of  discussing  this  veteran  organization.  About  a 
thousand  delegates  gathered,  and  nine  months  from  tomorrow,  the 
nam©  American  Legion  v/as  first  heard.  It  was  officially  chosen 
as  the  name  of  this  new  veterans'  Organization,  and  the  move- 
ment was  officially  launched  in  Prance  in  the  A.EvF* 

In  May  the  movement  was  officially  launched  in  this 
country.  By  November  this  movement  had  grown  from  a  thousand 
delegates  on  M  :roh  15  to  a  membership  of  over  one  million,  \7hat 
is  the  reason  of  this  great  growth^     There  is  just  one   roas-Jn  and 
that  is  because  its  ideal  was  right  and  practical.  iVhat  is  its 
ideal?  Service,  Service  to  this  couiitry,  service  to  our  comrades 
who  need  our  help.   Our  service  to  our  country  will  consist  in 
defense  of  this  country  from  the  foes  without  and  from  the  fo'^^** 
within.  In  defending  our  country  from  our   foes  without ,ve 
will  do  our  best  to  see  that  this  country  adopts  a  military  pol- 
icy that  v/ill  make  it  safe  from  future  aggression  from  any  for- 
eign foos,  and  yet  a  system  that  will  first  make  good  citizens 
who  in  time  of  war  will  be  good  soldiers.  In  the  defense  of  the 

country  from  foes  within,  we  will  take  a  determined  stand  for  law 
and  order.  V/e  represent  nearly  five  million  ex-service  men  who 
have  proved  their  patriotism  and  their  loyalty,  but  we  know  that 
there  are  nearly  one  hundred  million  other  Americans  who  are  also 
loyal  and  patriotic.  We  have  no  monopoly  of  patriotism  or  loyalty. 
\7e  know  that  our  service  to  our  country  v/ill  depend  upon  just 


1  i  ! 


•«■ 


that  extent  to  v/hich  we  get  the  support  and  approval  of  the  hun- 
dred million  other  American  citizens.  In  our  stand  for  the  main- 
tenance of  law  and  order  we  realize  that  as  good  soldiers  wo 
obeyed  the  military  authority,  and  now  as  good  citizens,  with  ev- 
en a  keener  sense  of  responsibility  than  ever  before,  we  will 
obey  civilian  authority  as  it  comes  to  us  through  the  Constitu- 
tion of  the  United  Statos  and  is  expressed  in  the  National,  State 
and  Local  G-overnment.   (Applause.) 

V/e  are  a  great  force  for  Americanism,  but  we  know  that 
there  are  many  other  forces  for  xjnericanism#   It  is  our  hope  that  we 
may  be  able  to  coordinate  all  these  forces  interested  in  the  main- 
tenance of  law  and  order  and  real  x»mericanism,-and  in  this  V7ay  act 
as  a  great  stabiibizer  during  these  days  of  readjustment.  In  a  way, 
our  campaign  is  based  on  service  to  our  country.  It  is  also  based 
on  service  to  our  comrades  who  need  our  help.  It  is  based  on  mutual 
helpfulness.  \7e  knov/  that  son©  of  our  comrades  have  been  terribly 
handicapped  by  their  experiences  while  in  the  service  of  this 
country,  and  it  is  most  appropriate  that  the  first  act  of  the  new 
administration  is  to  gather  together  here  in  Washington  the  State 
J  Commanders  from  the  entire  United  States  for  the  purpose  of  con- 
sidering, first,  the  Bureau's  dealings  with  the  disabled  men,  v/ith 
ex-service  men  needing  help,  and  second,  when  new  legislation  is 
needed  to  put  those  on  your  list  on  the  proper  basis* 

kSo  our  service  is  unselfish  and  it  is  practical.  It  is 
ased  upin  the  homely  virtues  of  oomnon  sense  and  clear  thinking 
and  of  fair  dealing  and  an  honest  day's  work.  \7e  are  here  particularly 


.'-X'    -..•; 


■•■^r.i:-..:     •-? 


J  .1  t 


-  W  .  >f        f 


...     'id  -i--.-   ■•- 


t       i\(.  i  Ai;.f:.. 
•„]■    i      :  :-: 


3.;'t  v;  iT/T   ...w   JjM    ,ic        T^i'f..-.. 


'JL;       '.  i       i  ; 


.     U-i-f:.  •■  C'VU'"!^'-    ■-     i    ■'■    '■■ 


';    •:    -li,*-       '  a  ■^'    ■■'■■ 


r:{.    l)    "Jil    ■'  ^i'^i.    U  . '•'- 


y  ri    -.t 


.-I... 


r-;r,?. 


:>i    :.l       .I-:'   ''••■' 


•  *•••• 


■     :         ,..  ,      .     .1  »     •    f  •t  ,' 

•  •  r       ■    •      -  '     '       '  '■  -^    •  .  •     '' 


'it--  \ 


;in  ;:'•£.•-;'■ 


23. 

at  thQ  present  tine  to  take  caro  of  the  disabled  men  and  those 
of  our  comrades  needing  as:5istance. 

This  particular  meetlrvg  this  ovoning  has  to  do  with, 
legislation,  \7e  ai-e  very  fortunate  in  having  as  Chairman  of  our 
Legislative  Co!iimM;i;e3  Mre  Miller  o:^  the  Ptate  of  PolAware,  who 
has  handled  legislative  nal-tors  3}.r.?o   the  .4i"\er?vCan  Logion  -.vas  first 
started,  in  this  covnn^y,  and  I  am  gci:ig  to  ank  hia  to  erxla^n  jiist 
what  wc  have  in  mind  this  evening,  \7e  have  §-.   good  mary  J-eaplo  to 
hear  from,  and  I  am  s^^-^S  ^^  ^^7   c^^  set  a  good  oxanplc  by  '^x-ealring 
less  than  four  minutes,  and  I  will  ask  Mr»   Mller  to  take  up  the 
question  of  legislation* 

SENATOR  V/ATSOIT:  I  take  it  for  granted  that  every- 
body knows  Tom  Miller.  He  served  in  the  House  of  Representatives. 
Of  course  he  is  not  tolling  that  around,  but  I  think  it  is  all 
right  to  let  everybody  know  it.  I  got  out  of  the  House  before  Tom 
got  in,  and  I  never  had  the  pleasure  of  serving  with  him,  but  I 
know  from  what  all  the  feD.lov/s  say  that  he  is  absolutely  all  ri^t 
and  that  your  legislative  matters  could  not  be  in  abler  hands  than 
in  the  hands  of  our  friend. 

Look  around  here  and  see  these  men  with  arms  gone, 
legs  gone  and  eyes  gone  and  I  think  that  you  ought  to  "have  a  great 
fine-hearted  fellow  like  Tom,  not  a  follow  who  is  going  around 
with  apothecary  scales  to  find  out  Just  iiow  this  little  thing 
ought  to  be  weighed  out,  and  hovi   that  little  thing  ought  to  be 
v/eighed  out,  but  everything  shoi^ld  bo  done  in  a  big,  free  generous 
American  way,  and  Tom  Miller  is  the  fellow  to  help  do  it. 


••       '.      *      ' 


BOH.  IECSOlS.  WILLIAM  MILLER:     Befor©  the  •pening 
remarks  of  the  Senator  from  Indiana,  when  he  opened  this  meet- 
ing, I  will  say  that  "when  we  were  out  in  the  hall  of  the  House, 
he  said,  »»V.'ell,  I  feel  at  home  over  here,"  referring  to  the  time 
when  he  was  Uncle  Joe's  "v;hip",  some  fifteen  years  ago,   gome  of 
us  said,  "Well,  Senator^  rumor  has  It  that  some  of  the  hoys  are 
going  to  give  you  a  chance  to  feel  at  home  in  another  building 
in  this  city."    ©le  only  exemption  that  the  watson  family  has 
claimed,  so  far  as  I  can  find  out,  is  the  senator's  exemption 
which  he  is  claiming  toni^t  from  the  presidential  race,   (Ap- 
plause and  laughter.) 

He  had  all  the  sons  that  he  possessed  in  uniform, 
and  i  will  say  to  you  gentlemen  here  who  do  not  know  it  that 
every  member  of  the  House  and  every  member  of  the  Senate  had 
sons  in  the  service,  if  they  were,  first,  able  to  raise  sons, 
and  secondly'^  if  those  sons  had  grown  to  the  proper  age,  every 
one  of  them.   it  is  too  long  a  story  to  go  into  detail. 

We  have  come  here  tonight  to  meet  you  gentlemen  in 
order  to  bring  concrete  facts  before  you.   Y/e  were  invited  to 
come  to  Washington  to  discuss  particularly  war  Risk  matters, 
and  matters  pertaining  to  the  disabled  soldiers  and  to  those 
people  who  lost  their  all  in  the  TRiari   We  have  been  here  for 
two  days.   We  have  not  been  running  around  adding  to  the 
riches  of  the  bus  companies  here  in  Washington.   We  have  been 
attending  strictly  to  business. 

At  Minneapolis  the  Convention  of  the  American  Legion, 


25. 

discussing  War  Risk  and  disability,   said,  "There  are  three  ques- 
tions to  be  considered:     What  will  Congress  do?    What  shall  the 
American  Legion  do?    What  shall,  the  War  Risk  Bureau'  do?" 

I  am  going  to  get  right  down  to  i^cts.     What  shall 
Congress  do?     Pass  the  Sweet  Bill.    (Applause,) 

Under  the  able  leadership  of  its  author,  and  helped 
by  the  menibers  of  the  Committee  on  Interstate  and  Foreign  Com- 
merce,  of  which  Mr,  Esch  over  there  is  Chaini^Ln,  and  of  which  there 
are  ether  members  here,  that  bill  has  already  passed  in  the  House 
of  Representatives.     This  bill  provides  for  increased  compensation 
for  disabled  men,  because,  God  knows,  gentlemen,  before  the  even- 
ing is  out  we  are  going  to  show  you  concrete  examples  here  in  uni- 
form that  the  compensation  must  be  increased  if  we  are  going  to 
carry  out  the  Government's  debt  of  honor  to  these  men  of  ours. 
It  enlarges  the  permitted  class  of  insurance  beneficiaries.    When 
a  n&n  takes  out  insurance  and  when  a  u^n  takes  out  compensation 
and  does  not  live  to  enjoy  it,   it  is  only  fair  that  some  one, 
whether  by  blood  relationship  or  other  relationship  or  by  legal 
adoption,  should  benefit  thereby.     It  also  provides  for  the  pay- 
ment of  insurance  either  in  a  Iximp  sum  or   in  periods   stretching 
over  three  years   or  more.     As  the  law  now  is,  you  all  know,  the 
insurance  is  payable  over  a  period  of  20  years. 

We  have  all  heard  what  the  distinguished  ser^tor  from 
Utah  said.     He  is  a  inan  of  his  word,   every  word  of  it.     It   is  100^. 
When  Mr.  Reed  Smoot  states  his   ideas,   it  is  most  gratifying  to 
every  one  of  us  to  whom  the  promise  and  pledge  are  given  ¥y  that 


•  ^ ••;':<-    ."i-r 


r  oi;^).  .' 


'^.r/.''.    '.M.- . ■.:•>.:{; 


>    'i      ''C" 


•1       i   ,  .        -l- 


26. 

Gentlemen,  because  in  his  hands  and  the  hands  of  his  two  colleagues 
of  the  committee.  Senator  Sutherland,  of  West  vircginiaj,  and  Senator 
John  Sharp  V/illiams,  of  Mississippi,  rests  the  poorer  to  initiate  the 
amendments  to  the  war  Risk  insu-rap.ce  Act  emhodied  in  the  iRweet  Bill* 

Senator  Smoot's  talk,  i  thinks  is  one  of  the  most  re- 
asfiuring  statements  that  any  of  ub  has  heard  here  in  Washington  since 
we  came  down  here,  and  I  know  it  will  be  our  pleasure  to  cooperate 
v/ith  him  to  any  extent  possible  in  impressing  the  matter  upon  those 
colleagues  of  hie  "fiho  may  not  fully  appreciate  the  rights  of  our 
ex-service  men  and  particularly  the  disabled  ex-service(.men,  as  he 
does* 

Gentlemen,  the  United  States  of  Am.erica,  the  people  there- 
in, the  bulk  of  them,  do  not  appreciate  what  this  war  has  left  be- 
hind*  It  is  a  plain  ma-t;ter  of  mathematics  to  figure  it  out»  over 
there  around  veid^on,  the  American  troops  that  were  there  saw  the 
remains  of  hun^Jreds  of  thousands  of  Frenchmen  that  have  not  yet 
even  been  put  under  the  soil;  thousands  of  pairs  of  shoes  above 
ground  with  the  shin  bone  sticking  out.   prance  lost  1,700,000  dead, 
2,000,000  injured.   oJbereis  not  a  family  in  France  that  hag  not  had 
the  war  brought  home  directly  to  its  door  by  either  the  death  or 
the  wounding  of  a  brother  or  father.    in  Erglr,ndv  it  is  the  same 
way.   Serbia,  Italy,  all  of  our  allies  have  had  the  war  brought 
home  to  them  as  the  people  of  the  United  States  will  never  have  it 
brought  home.   Why?   We  will  fjnd  out  that  we  finly  lost  sixty  or 
seventy  thousand  men  kr'.lled.   There  are  two  hundred  and  some  odd 
thousand  wounded  or  disabled  men  whose  wounds  show.   d^at  means 


27. 
approxiroately  three  hundred  thousand  csasualities.     Hardly  a 
million  and  a  half  to  two  million  peoiDle  out  of  one  hondred 
and  ten  raillion  people  of  this  coiuntry  have  had  brought  honie 
to  them  what  this  war  has  left  "behind  it,  and  the  sixteen  men 
here  in  uniform  tonight,  two  s(iuads  of  men,  illustrate  it  to 
you. 

One  of  these  men  said  to  us  last  night,   "Why,  gentle- 
men, before  the  v;ar  statistics  show  that  there  were  eiglit  thou- 
saod  men  who  could  sign  their  np.mes  for  one  million  dollars. 
ITow,  there  are  almost  i'i:3o;:tS''-five  thousand.     1!his  country  has 
been  prosperous  in  this  war,  tit.:  there  are  one  million  and  a 
half  of  us  only  who  Imow  what  the  war  has  left  behind." 


jf''-'    ■■'. 


■^•^:r 


^si-i.'i.rt::;- 


-Oi  .-;■: 


'..i.l:'.  v.x   vc"^. 


28. 

Ihe  gentlemen  from  Hew  Hampsire   (Mr.  Was  on)  has  inr- 
troduced  a  "bill  wfeicb  has  "been  mentioned  in  onr  Conference,  as 
second  only  in  impoolsnce  to  the  Sweet  Bill.     OSiis  "bill  will  aii- 
thorize  the  Vfciv  Rislc  Insurance  Bureau  to  establish  fourteen  re- 
gional offices  thrcughoiit  th^  Unitsd  States.     We  have  gone  further, 
Mr*  Watson.     We  wanted  f orly-Sj.glit   or  forty-nine  or  fifty,   one  for 
each  State  and  Territory  in  the  TJ6iion.     (.Applause.) 

77e  want  this  pest  office,  which,   so  lUr*  Burleson  says, 
has  "been  run  at  a  profit,  according  to  figures,  we  want  lihis  post- 
office  to  he  used  so  that  the  nan  that  Senator  Smcot  means,  the 
man  that  cannot  write  a  letter,  either  "because  he  did  not  have 
the  advantages  that  most   of  us  had  or  "because  he  has  not  the  time^ 
or  "because  he  is  away  from  a  post  office,  we  want  the  Post  office 
Department  used  to  extend  the  facilities  of  this  great     insurance 
department   of  the  G-ovemri-Gnt  to  eTe]!y  man  v/ho  wants  to  continue 
that   insurance. 

We  recommend  as  ne\;  legislation,  to  extend  the  princi- 
ples of  Llr*  Sv/eet^s  hillj.  so  that  term  insvj'anoe  as  well  as  con- 
verted insurance  shall  "be  pa,7aDle  at  optioii  :ln  a  3^:imp  sum;  to 
eliminate  all  restrictions  as  tc  the  class  of  permitted  "benefici- 
aries; to  relieve  from  paymeats   of  premiums  on  t'^rm  insurance 
those  persons  who  are  rooefiving  hospital  care  zrjler  the  Bureau  of 
War  Risk  Insurance;   these  persons  in  -vocational  training  during 
the  period  of  their  training,  and  those  persons  teirrporarily  dis- 
abled, retroactive  to  Octc^  r  6,   1917;  axid  a.lF;c  to  x-'TOvide  with- 
out charge  hospital  and  medical  jare  for  all  honorabi^y  discharged 
service  men  for  one  year  from  the  date  of  their  discharge. 


•-..;>  r'j.i^ ';■•••' .   ,..!■•,■■.'  -  ;-,3  ;f..  v-;!;?;    ;*■■;-•■.;■..,,■       '.,.  ■   \.;. .:V " iJs';::^    •    ;.>0:";;.T 

rw.  -:,r!?    ^^r^-^i:.    ■:'■    ..■'••..■.  ■    .v.  •     ..     ■      .      , -- u:;.- '.;   ^-i- ; 

i  ;•<■:}   .■:::'.o  ].;;.;.■:.    ,  ^:     c:;    .■  oi •''    .    •-     ;    ■■:.'.. ^     ;.;■   .     •  . 

;i.-.:v     ui-^r  .r..:\    .  ,    ;.r  »•■=;■■;.:■;   ■   ;   ;   ■.:  ^v..:  ;.-;'   .:j.;v^.>:         -'      :;•':   •      .^'  ... 


(:.r^3 


so  , 


.♦^  -w 


■:  •  j-rrii-^c^r. 


•  i  U    ^  V  - 


,'i..-  ••■c   ■■i 


^.  ■■..->  Tr- 


:-"i:j 


f  ■  .^ 


•-  . ...■     -J  J 


29. 
I  am  not  soing  to  elaborate  tbose  points  because 
there  are  men  in  uniform  who  are  going  to  tell  you,  sho;?  you 
tbat  vAiile  they  are  out  there  at  the  hospitals  getting  thirty 
dollars  a  mcanth  as  a  "buck  private,  they  not  only  take  out  seven 
or  eight  dollars  for  their  insurance  policy  premiuiEs  but  they 
take  out  an  allotn:ent  of  ^15  board.  These  men  have  also  sub- 
scribed for  Liberty  bonds,  because,  gentlemen,  if  you  do  not 
Imov;  it,  the  soldiers  of  the  Qiited  States  have  proportionally 
not  only  given  their  fighting  but  they  carried  their  share  of 
Liberty  Loan  drives  for  their  country,  {^plause.) 

We  have  come  down  here,  gentlemen,  in  a  way  that  can 
be  aptly  illustrated  by  a  stoiy  to  the  point.  Coae  day  I  was  out 
in  the  State  of  Nevada  and  I  sent  ny  partner  up  to  see  vibether 
he  could  not  get  some  fresh  meat.  I  was  building  the  fire  for 
the  meal.  Pretty  soon  I  looked  up  on  the  east  slope  of  the 
Sierras  and  I  sav/  the  trees  shaking  back  and  forth  and  I  heard 
a  terrible  crash,  and  pretty  soon  te^  partner  came  into  the  clear- 
ing and  —  he  had  more  hair  than  I  have  —  it  was  standing  on  end, 
and  he  said,  "  I  have  got  a  bear  and  I  am  bringing  him  home  alive*" 
(Applause.)  v7e  came  do\m  here,  gentlemen,  to  bring  facts  home  to 
Senators  and  Congressman,  real  live  facts. 

V/e  have  asked  to  come  in  here  tonight  gentlemen  in 

I 

uniform  from  the  Walter  Reed  Hospital,  twenty  minutes  away  from 

your  Capitol  and  twenty  minutes  away  from  your  offices,  Mr. 
Cholme ley- Jones.  Every  man  has  suffered,  actually  suffered,  not 


I 


\SJt:'  -M-.)  r 


*_■/•;,•■,;'.  •':* 


■'.   •.;      .    ■^;Ki      ;T.r  ;• '^^ P/ 'V  •  V rvT   '••';:;v^^A  ■"ir.ff.y,^   ,fcr: 
•   ■■'■■■.    ',;■.:  !:j   ',0-^  uz/j:.;--  f;.;.v)V    'r.'VH^t- 


«*0'<-'-'ri'. 


■if.v 


^'*. T'l     ./i'  "j     "^"^    '.  .', ' 


•ITO 


*  J  I ..  I 


.)! 


./uo.'  -'^'io  "     .  i^^i 


.TS    XCjt 


r  •'•r 


■}    .•■.•*;' 


-  30  -. 

only  from  woimds  "but  suf faring  from  epirit,  whicli  is  a  condition 

that  this  great  nation'*?  goverrjinent  in  &11  kindness  ought  to 

change. 

Right  here  under  your  shadow  there  are  sixteen  hundred 

men»  Hiey  are  out  there.  We  have  one  per  cent  of  theiTi  here  toiiight 

to  bring  sotae  concrete  c-Ka^p]os  to  you.  3ive  heed  to  wha/i,  they  cay. 
I  am  going  to  call  on  Corporal  Butte  of  the  82th  Division. 

He  is  going  to  stand  on  the  only  log  tdet  •'jhe  wa:?  gO';e  him  and  tell 

you  some  concrete  facts- 
Corporal  Biritte,  talT'^f;  the  .«3tand.  (Applause.) 
C0RP3AL  BUllE:  IftTo  Cha3rQj.T.n,  first  of  all,  the  SBixteen 

men  -  or  the  fifteen  men  "bepidos  pi^^eeilf  -  who  came  here  tonighb  wish 

to  pay  our  respects  to  the  mo'jfbsrs  of  the  Senate  and  memhers  of  Oojigress, 

and  particu?.ar.ly  to  the  Hcaorable  Sexiator  tfeoot  from  Uiah* 

Tlie  foui'th  of  Kfovem'Der,  if  I  reasjiToer  the  date  correctly, 

Mt*.  Jones  and  the  chief  of  the  Compciisa-I^ion  Division  came  to  the 

hospital.  I  did  not  g-et  to  hear  -the  lecture  they  gave  that  after- 
noon in  the  Bed  O::oss,  "but  I  did  get  to  talk  with  them  in  the  ^a^'d. 
New,  when  I  speak  these  thiiig^,  I  practically  represent  one  h'xnrli'ed 

men.  ©le  sixteen  that  are  here  tonight  rspieaeat  sixteen  hucr^jj-ed 
men  at  the  hospital.  The  morale  of  that  hospital  at  this  tims  is 
lower  than  the  Genrau  army  ever  was,  even  when  we  had  them  running. 

Senator  Smoot  has  mentioned  practically  all  the  things 
that  we  asked  for  in  a  peti>;ion  that  we  eent  to  the  imarican 


•J,'-,' 


,*   <  J 


•".V  Ti^jM^    ■>■*    ■' 


:*.'T       X 


t    j-;    !:-.:v 


o.v;vv   ^^V/  ;:; 


■■'■  *   '?  :v7.  ■ !' 


'•:■',  •■■■■ ."  i  ■■  >'  f 


-.^vV    j-.-  it.-i 


31. 
Legion  at  their  convention  at  Minneapolis,       Ov7ing  to   the  pressure 
of  buoiness,   I  suppose,  we   did  not  gei;  an  answer  until  they  met 
here   in  Washington,     Mr-  BaegSp   one  of  the   Legislative  Conmittee, 
happened  to  meat  us  by  aucident  one  afternoon  at    Walter  Reed.  He 
immediately  extended  us  an  invitation  to  come  dovm  and  meet  the 
delegates  from  the  forty-eight  States  and  their  national  officers, 
which  was  a  pleasiue  for  us,   I  assure  you. 

I  donH  pretend  to  be  a  tailker  at  all.       This  is,   I  ex- 
pect,  the  first  tiHe   that  I  ever  addressed  this  many  men  in  my 
life.       I  hAve  written  out  a  few  things  that     I  read  to  these  men 
last  night  regarding  the   condition  the  men  are   in  at  the  hospi- 
tal at  the  present  time,   the  way  they  feed  them,   their  attitude, 
the  discontent,   the  dissatisfaction,   the   suffering  that  they  are 
going  through,  and  I  don't  believe   there   is  a  man  in  this  room 
tonight  that  knows  one   iota  of  the   things  that  thay  suffer,  un- 
less he  has  been  sick  himself  with  a  wound  of  thet  sort. 

The  peculiarities  of  the  wounds  received  in  battle 
are  so  different  from  those  of  accidents  in  civil  life   that  I 
can't  see   from  the   standpoint  of  one  who  has  suffered  with  them 
where  they  get  the  comparison  of  the   two  different  classes  of 
wounds.     We  do  not  say  anything  in  our  petition^  nor  have  we 
asked  the  War  Risk  Bureau  or  any  Senator  to  tsJce   that  into  con- 
sideration, because  we   thought  and  supposed  at  the   time   that 
they  made   this  rating  up  that  the  imerican  Experience   Table  of 
Mortality  did  not  cover   those   things   to  the  extant  of  the  wounds 
that  we  had,  and  I  don't  believe  it  does.       I  had  the   opinion  %t 


5^ 

one  man  tn  tha  State  of  Kew  Jersey  wlio  is  admitted  an  insuyance 
eaqpert,  supposed  to  be  in  ©very  way,  and  he  said  he  could  not 
find  anything  that  would  cover  those  peculiarities  which  come 
time  after  time  in  after  life  after  a  man  has  been  discharged  as 
relieved  from  further  treatment  in  the  hospital, 

I  want  you  to  tafee  this  as  the  expression  of  an  atti- 
tude of  unrest,  dissatisfaction,  created  or  caused  by  suffering. 
The  men  in  the  majority  of  cases  have  not  had  enough  to  occupy 
their  minds.  !Phat  is  my  way  of  thinking.  Because  a  man,  in  order 
to  get  those  things,  must  occupy  his  mind  to  a  certain  extent.  If 
he  does  not,  he  is  bound  to  drop  back  into  dissatisfaction. 

A  little  over  one  month  ago,  after  talking  things 
over  with  the  men  at  the  hospital,  we  decided  to  petition  your 
Order  for  support  and  help  to  get  certain  things  straightened 
out,  a  decision  that  v/as  reached  only  six  days  before  your  con- 
vention at  Minneapolis,  We  found  upon  investigating  that twenty 
minutes  away  from  the  hospital  no  representative  of  the  War  Risk 
Bureau  had  taken  the  time  to  look  into  the  numerous  cases  that 
were  there  entitled  to  consideration.  Ihe  strain  the  country  has 
been  under  for  the  last  fovir  months  did  not  increase  the  morals 
of  any  former  service  man,  but  it  has  sho^jvn  to  a  few  of  us  that 
the  fault  lies  mostly  in  the  fact  that  this  country  has  produced, 
since  the  beginning  of  war  in  1914,  twenty-two  thousand  million- 
aires against  eight  thousand  previous  to  the  time  mentioned. 

Married  and  single  men  in  the  hospital  at  the  present 
time,  many  of  them  supporting  families  and  parents,  have  been 


'i  ' 


hi 


i  f' 


33. 
forced  to  do  It  on  &  ^s^e  ^  a  ^1^1^  AM  t^  allotiaenti 
He  gave  his  all,  and  then  is  forced  to  stay  in  the  hospital 
with  his  thoi^hts  on  home  and  his  wotmds.     If  the  Hissoiwi  river 
and  the  Mississippi  river  have  disabilities  enough  to  draw  some 
thing  like  tr/o  hundred  juillions  of  dollars,   if  v;e  can  sell  on© 
hundred  million  dollar  planes  for  eight  or  nine  rail  lion,   if  we 
can  let  thousands  of  trucks  stand  withottt  shelter,  this  Govenw 
nont  with  resources  of  billions  of  dollars  might  at  least  do  as 
mT3Ch  as  Canada  with  somethi^ig  liloe  sixty  millions  of  resources. 
Theoretical  ideas  cannot  suffice  to  put  a  wan  who  has 
a  disability  back  into  civil  life  with  the  stamina  and  punch  need- 
ed to  con5L.ete  with  the  business  world  of  today.     Of  numerous  men 
^0  have  incurred  disability  due  to  accidents  previous  to  the  war, 
gentlemen,   I  ask  you,  how  many  of  them  have  made  good?       The  percent- 
age is  so  small  that  it  is  only  m  entiotcied  to  illustrate;  and  those 
connected  with  the  morale  of  hospital  life  have  given  us  certain 
cases  that  are  phenomenal  in  every  respect,  but  not  dealing  with 
the  general  run  of  cases.    Would  any  of  you  gentlemen  be  willing 
to  trade  places  v;ith  one  of  these  cases  now  at  this  hospital,  liv- 
ing on  liquid  diet?    Now,  by  liquid  diet,   I  mean  oaslied  potatoes, 
raw  eggs  \iaiipped  iip  to  a  liquid,  some  times  forced  through  a  tube 
in  the  mouth,  other  times  throu^  the  diaphragm  into  the  stomach. 
5here  are  men  in  that  hospital  vfeo  have  lived  nine  to  fourteen 
monthf  with  their  jaws  bridged  apart  with  cold  amalgam,^  letting 
that  pus  viiich  forms  in  the  ulcer oits  formation  of  the  bone,  rvaa 
back  into  their  stonachs.    You  have  not  seen  those  cases. 


i^i^m  *. 


.•is»  -^i^.' 


-34- 

iJien,  maybe,  you  Will  be  ^dlcl  tha-b  yoar  chances  of  get- 
ting well  will  never  be  good,  or  perhaps  you  will  go  through  fourteen 
operations,  both  minor  and  major,  suffering"  the  pangs  of  a  super-hell, 
and  then  be  told  you  will  outgrow  your  disability  in  time  -  that 
you  should  tcfce  advantage  of  the  Vocational  training. 

That  is  all  well  and  good.  But  have  you  taken  the  other 
side  of  the  argument  -  that  these  men  are  not  professional  soldiers 
in  sjxy  sense,  but  were  called  by  the  draft  into  this  v/ar,  and  that 
after  the  representations  made  at  the  time  they  were  received  into 
the  camps,  the  idea  was  conveyed  to  them  that  they  would  be  taken 
care  of  in  every  way  possible?  But  have  they  done  it? 

©le  largest  Insurance  Company  in  existence,  although  run 
by  the  Government  and  supported  by  it  in  every  way,  has  today 
dwindled  to  almost  nothing  but  a  large  building  filled  to  the  brim 
with  War  Workers  and  claims  so  numerous  that  one  of  the  officials 
said  it  may  take  ten  years  to  straighten  out  some  of  them,  A  war- 
time bonus  is  given  to  these  workers  to  keep  them  patriotic  enough 
to  wind  up  unfinished  work,  yet  we  who  went  through  that  Hell  over 
There  and  the   Hell  of  a  thousand  tortures  in  the  hospitals  -  are  we 
to  be  denied  that  v/hich  we  thought  we  were  paying  for  at  the  time 
that  we  were  asked  to  take  out  this  insurance? 

I  think  that  I  am  safe  in  saying  that  over  ninety  per- 
cent of  the  men  understood  that  this  insurenoe  covered  partial, 
as  well  as  total,  disability  at  the  time  of  taking  this  out.  It 
seems  a  funny  thing  to  us  that  about  thirty-eight  hundred  thousand 
men  should  make  that  mistake.   Surely  it  does  not  speak  well  fop 


■J    vrOT'^'"\  , 


dr. 


i,»)r- 


7-. 


jLO     • 


;f!^■i  vr:    .   c .; 


i  xy>: 


Xl-'r. 


litrx  *i 


d5^ 

The  most  exdellent  Government  of  tha  United  States,   if  it  is  trug* 
And  there  are    thousands  and  thousands  that  are  willing  to  swear 
to  it. 

Mr.   Lindsley  quit  the  War  Risk  Bureau  because  of  fric- 
tion between  him  and  those  higher  up,  and  it  has  been  so  since 
that  time  --  no  cooperation  between  the   different  department  heads 
created  to  handle   it  for   the  emergency,  and  now  that  we  are  on  a 
peace-time  basis  again,  it  seems  to  us  who  are   left  in  the  hospi- 
tal,  that  the   only  solution  is  the  combining  of  the  War  Risk  Bu- 
reau, Federal  Vocational  Boardf  Public  Health  Service  and  the  old 
Pension  Bureau  into  one  concrete  organization,   taking  advantage 
of  the  men  who  have  made  good  and  shown  the  proper  spirit  and  com- 
bining them  with  the  Department  of  the   Interior,  for  the  good  of 
the  eighty  thousand  men  who  are  entitled  to  the  consideration 
heretofore  mentioned.      (Applause) 

That   there  should  be  a  more   thorough  interpretation 
of  the  various  wound  cases  and  their  cause  and  after-effects,   that 
this  should  be    taken  into  consideration  in  the  rating  of  the  vari- 
ous wound  cases,  and  that  a  Board  should  be  sent  to   the  hospitals 
throughout  the  country  to  get  at   the  proper  angle   of  the  various 
wound  cases  in  order   to  determine  what  per  cent  they  should  re- 
ceive.    We  contend  that  the  American  table   of  mortality  does  not 
cover  the  peculiar  situation  that  results  from  wounds  received 
in  battle,  and  that  seme  consideration  should  be  given  to  what 
these  men  did  in  civil  life  before   entering  the  Army. 

The   sixteen  hundred  men  in  the  hospital  are  not  agitat- 


i.^.J  i^, 


:  ■:. ;  f 


■A- 


-tc  .^v\ 


. '•    -,:yr.: 


LfW^    :r:.;.^:   -■r.ic:^ 


vji   «>,,»x  i^j^^t  i>iii"  •.;^t«;T 


?•  1 


'.P4>  «0-: 


•;    :•n•:>r:^ 


ij 


xr. 


'■;lfi.     ;' 


36» 
ed  or  unreasonable.  But  I  ask  you,  have  any  of  you,  v»!ho  are  in 
a  position  to  know,  ever  been  through  the  wards  of  the  hospital 
and  tried  to  help,  or  give  the  men  any  advice  as  to  what  would 
be  the  best  course  for  them  to  follow  ja  the  future? 

Ts70  men  have  coir.e  to  the  different  hospitals  from 
time  to  time  and  given  a  synopsis  of  certain  things  but  the 
vital  things  that  are  needed  to  put  them  back  to  the  pro-trar 
standard  have  never  been  given  to  them.  You  must  realize  that 
these  men  are  fighting  all  of  the  possible  hacidicaps  that  can 
be  throvm  in  their  v/ay,  if  they  are  to  maintain  themselves  in 
the  future.  They  have  been  very  patient,  and  from  the  very  time 
that  they  were  conscripted  into  the  Amy,  or  enlisted,  they  have 
placed  every  confidence  in  the  men  \ihom  this  Government  had 
placed  in  charge  of  the  things  that  v;ere  vital  to  them.  Intensi- 
fied training  and  the  shortness  of  time  has  been  very  bad  for  a 
great  many  of  us,  and  in  the  future  I  think  it  will  be  very  hard 
for  anyone  to  get  a  former  service  man  to  sign  a  paper  of  any 
sort  witliout  reading  it  in  full,  and  the  complete  explanation  of 
same*  By  this  I  refer  to  the  War  Risk  Insurance  Application  viaiic)! 
we  claim  was  represented  to  us  as  for  partial  disability  as  well 
as  permanent,  because  about  thirty  per  cent  of  us  could  not  read 
or  write.  But  it  seems  at  the  present  time  that  the  only  guarantees 
we  were  blessed  with  was  that  we  might  be  allowed  a  discharge,  af- 
ter insisting  that  we  were  capable  of  going  on  the  outside  and  tak- 
ing care  of  ourselves* 

!Ehirteen  months  have  passed  by,  and  only  in  the  last 
three  months  have  officials  done  anything  to  try  and  get  in  touch 


;>:  V 


■..I-  .•  r. 


:i   r< 


1 


'■>iiT 


■  :   .  ,1 


.1  !   ■  ■ 


J  7 


'^-  J ..  :i 


;r  :; 


?.":i: 


'.- "j!  ■■. 


-37- 

with  the  men  who  are  entitled  to  it  —  referring  to  vocational 
training.  Literature  and  paniphlets  were  given  to  some  of  us  on 
the  other  side,  saying  what  the  Board  would  do  for  us,  and  mak- 
ing the  propaganda  work  of  George  Oreel  look  like  funeral  crape. 

Have  any  of  you  men  of  the  Vocational  Board  received 
a  handicap  that  caused  you  to  take  up  new  work,  starting  at  the 
very  "beginning  and  learning  it  over  again?  If  you  have,  then  you 
know  what  it  is  to  hring  the  mind  "back  into  training  so  as  to  "be 
efficient.  It  means  almost  double  time  and  concentration  for  the 
age  of  25  that  it  would  before  that.  I  am  going  to  give  you  an 
illustration  of  one  who  is  in  the  hospital  at  the  present  time, 
a  man  who  has  "been  tv/enty-six  months  in  the  Army.  He  claimed 
exenrption  on  account  of  an  aged  father  afflicted  in  a  very  bad  . 
way. 

I  might  say,  while  I  am  reading  this,  that  this  man  is 
not  here  tonight  "but  if  any  of  you  gentlemen  want  to  do  something 
for  a  man  who  is  in  a  very  bad  position  financially  and  otherwise, 
as  a  favor  you  might  go  to  his  Congressman  and  ask  him  to  give 
this  man  special  assistance.  If  there  is  any  one  of  you  Senators 
or  Congressmon  that  would  like  to  take  up  this,  I  v/ould  deem  it 
a  special  favor  to  give  you  his  name  after  v/e  close  the  meeting. 

As  I  say,  he  claimed  exemption  on  account  of  an  aged 
father  afflicted  in  a  very  bad  v/ay,  and  a  wife  for  whom  he  has 
had  to  pay  doctor's  bills  continuously  since  being  in  the  army. 
This  man  is  now  in  the  hospital  with  a  disability  to  his  right 
arm  which  makes  him  almost  useless  as  a  farmer,  except  as  he  may 


-,•}•... 


'  ■:xn 


i'O,^;   V 


■i   /     •  ^    ..;,-.;^  T 


".      ;  ■} 


.'  V.' 


■■••  'Mi' 


S8* 

resort  to  hiring  help  to  do  his  Woi»k.   .    1  might  6ay  that  this  man's 
age   is  33,     Can  this  man  go  to  school  at  his  age,   and  v/ith  a  lim- 
ited education  make   for  any  betterment  in  his   future   life    the  way 
the  situation  is  handled  at   the  present  time?       You  men  did  not 
know  he  was  out  there  at  the  hospital,  did  you?     Well,  he   is   there, 
and  several  more   that  I  Imoi?  personally,  but  your  Survey     Officer 
has  never  been  to  sea    them;  and  I  canvassed  one  ward  Sunday 
and  found  twenty-four  men  who  have  never  been  surveyed  as   to  what 
they  were  going  to  do.     Do  you  think  that  fair   to  the  public  which 
has  been  waiting  and  watching  for   tangible  results  from  you  men? 
Is   it  going  to  be  a  case  of  forcing  you  to  action  every  time  we 
want  anything  done  for  us? 

One  of  the   biggest  faults  we  who  are   the  subjects  for 
consideration  find  in  all  cases  connected  with  the   different  de- 
partments giving  relief  for   the  men  is   that  there   is  no  cooper- 
ation with  the   other  sides   of  the  Government,  and  we  hope   to  see 
some   of  you  men  who  are  big  enough  to  push  the  consolidation  of 
the  departments  under  one  head  through,  getting  results  and  imme- 
diate action  on  the    thing  in  question. 

I  thank  you.        (Applause.) 

MR.  MILLER:  Gentlemen,   last  November   11th  at  about 

10:20  some   of  us  at  the  front  near  Sedan  heard  that  there  was  go- 
ing to  be  an  armistice.       The  French  in  their  quaint  phrase   shouted 
••Fini  la  Guerre."     *Last  4th  of  March  when  you  gentlemen  were  adjourn- 
ing here  and  going  to  your  homes,  not  knowing  when  you    would  be 
called    again,  and  the  President  of  these  United    States  was  back 


.).'■  ■■■'••.  .'li^.     ' 


I  '•; 


■5U--     -.fO'.;       ■  » 


•K    ■ 


V  I  ■  ■     ■'        ! 


;  •■  1 


','      "-'  tli    .'■  •! 


-t  r; 


■j-^f;-v.* 


'.    •>      .-,,>_,. 


*)fi 


;;;.. 


:i:'V:i    f:/    ..'. 


■.i''K 


■■■■'.  :\i:ty 


';■>,  'i' 


■f\  •;.'<"''  Si    (<  f 


J; 


•>}.'vi--0' 


r-.^-fiv-:.    ••'»•.? 


-39- 

again  from  Ms  first  trip  on  the  George  V/ashington,  there  was  a 
battle  going  on  in  Northern  Hassia,  I  am  going  to  ask  Private 
Nelson  of  the  North  Russia  Archangel  Expedition  to  tell  you  what 
hit  him  on  the  4th  of  March,  six  months  after  we  thought  it  was 
"Fini  la  guerre",  and  v/hat  he  is  now  going  through. 

Private  Nelson   (Applause.) 

PRIVATE  NELSON:   Mr.  Chairman,  in  "behalf  of  the 
soldiers  who  have  come  dov/n  here  v;ith  me  this  evening,  this  is 
something  that  I  am  safe  to  say  that  I  have  never  done  in  public 
"before,  and  that  is  to  make  a  speech.  But  nevertheless  I  will  do 
ray  best,  with  your  approval,  and  as  I  am  one  of  the  very  few  v/ho 
are  in  this  neighborhood  from  Northern  Russia,  I  will  tell  you 
about  that. 

I  v/ent  overseas  in  July,  1918,  v/ith  the  339th  Infantry, 
which  they  termed  as  Detroiters,  you  know,  from  Michigan.  We  sailed 
from  England,  landed  in  Northern  Riissia  at  Archangel  on  the  4th  of 
September,  and  we  went  on  to  the  interior  of  the  land  there  for 
about  two  hundred  and  forty  miles,  where  v/e  came  in  contact  with 
the  Bolsheviks.  The  Bolsheviks  had  fled  from  Archangel  after  they 
had  taken  from  that  little  city  on  the  Northern  coast  of  Russia 
everything  that  it  possessed,  including  guns  and  ammunition  that 
were  sent  from  this  country  and  England,  G^iese  Bolsheviks  were 
well  supplied  with  the  stuff  that  we  had  sent  over  there  for  the 
Russian  ari^y  that  had  failed  in  the  meantime,  and  the  consequence 
was  that  the  Bolsheviks  had  turned  aroimd  and  with  the  aid  of  the 
Geiroan  army,  charged  on  us  with  our  own  ammunition  and  guns. 


•;  i. 


I  If  ■'  ■■.;.''    ;.  \  .) 


xr    ,-l:a-;i' 


!■•       ;  . '.v 


,.  .1,  Mu;.    wi    .ti-:.j..\  i 


",    -■■(IT'  ttf' 


».^         :;-iU' 


..■V,-,  .      u.;i.. 


V  ^' 


I         ••        .         f;- 


.'1  \ 


■•:irrr:.; 


'.7     '-"V 


r.u  :• 


40 


I  \7as  at  the  front  continually  from  the  time  that  we 
landed  there  until  I  was  wounded,  a  period  of  about  seven  months. 
For  most  of  the  boys  that  were  up  thsre  in  Northern  Russia,  there 
was  no  relief,  iEhey  were  continually  at  the  front  for  ten  months. 
The   cold  weathor  up  there  is  beyond  mistal© ,  and  it  v/as  really  very 
hard  for  those  men  who  were  not  acclimated  to  that  cold  v/eather  to 
endure  it.   I  was  wounded  in  a  little  village  by  the  name  of  Vistoska, 
on  the  4th  of  March,  1919,  after  we  had  retreated  from  the  Bolsheviks 
under  their  pressure  for  about  sixty  miles.  At  the  time  that  I  was 
wounded  I  made  my  way  to  a  little  first  aid,  where  they  slapped  a 
few  bandages  on  me  the  best  that  they  knew  how,  and  from  there  on 
I  traveled  for  about  two  hundred  and  forty  miles,  over  ice  and  snow, 
on  a  little  bit  of  a  sled,  a  hand  sled  you  may  call  it,  in  order  to 
get  to  a  hospital  where  I  could  get  attencion.  Kiis  took  about  eigtt 
days.  Now,  there  is  no  question  about  what  I  had  to  endure  in  that 
length  of  tine,  but  I  am  glad  to  say  that  I  am  back  to  this  great 
country  that  I  surely  did  long  for  v/hile  I  v/as  over  *-,h?.ve. 

But  there  v/as  one  little  question  that  I  had  in  my  mind 
that  I  would  like  to  bring  up  before  the  Congressmen,  and  this  is 
the  first  opportimity  that  I  have  ever  had.  I  have  been  talking  to 
quite  a  m;iraber  of  boys  in  the  Walter  Eeed  Hor:!pital  in  the  various 
wards,  and  I  find  that  there  are  many  of  those  boyr5  who  are  young 
married  men,  that  are  wour^dod,  lying  in  the  hospital.  Now,  these, 
men,  privates  in  the  Uijit':d  States  Army ,   received  for  their  pay 
thirty  dollars  a  month.  Fifteen  dollars  of  this  money  they  are 
compelled  to  pay  to  their  wife  as  an  allotment.   Tlie  govorrioent  also 


i  ,  iV't       .'i.! 


T'.t     •;  ^.  ■ 


'-.■:j    ,^.'.. 


i  .'.   J 


i  v. 


. ..  ;■.■,.     ■     i    -I  ■  I- 


'■  .;f:,'.   vi-i^'-^ 


•,  -f-:' 


h,:.r.    -'i 


•r    ■)   • 


t      ,  •  I 


41. 

pays  fifteen,  naOcing  a  total  of  thirty  dollars  a  month.  No-w, 
those  nen  that  have  ten  thousand  dollars  insurance  to  Icoep  up, 
they  are  oompelled  also  to  pay  out  of  the  fifteen  dollars  that 
they  have  left  about  aix  dollars  and  eighty  cents.  At  least, 
that  is  what  I  pay  nyself  •  2^   salary  that  I  dra^z  at  the  end  of 
each  and  every  month  is  ei^t  dollars  and  t\7enty  cents.  Of  course, 
I  need  at  least  tooth  brushes  and  tooth  paste. 

New,  I  don't  "believe  that  there  is  a  nan  in  this  house 
toni^t  but  who  will  agree  with  me  that  it  is  almost  an  impossi- 
bility in  this  day  and  time  to  exist  on  thirty  dollars  a  month, 
let  alone  live.  Now,  I  would  like  to  see  immediate  steps  taken 
in  this  behalf  for  the  married  men,  also  immediate  steps  taken 
for  the  relief  of  the  single  men  that  are  lying  there  in  the 
hospital,  dissatisfied.  I  for  one  have  an  indefinite  period  of 
time  to  stay  in  the  hospital  yet,  and  all  the  time  that  I  an 
in  this  Walter  Reed  Hospital  I  realize  the  fact  that  I  am  going 
in  debt  deeper  and  deeper  every  day  for  my  home. 

I  thanlc  you.        (Applause. I 

MR.  LIILI4ER:  Gentl^nen,  at  the  time  the  war 

broke  out,  a  man  named  Becker  was  a  railroad  brakeman.  You  know 
what  that  takes,  that  not  only  takes  two  good  legs  but  strong 
azms  and  a  quick  mind  to  operate.  To-ni^t  he  sits  before  you 
here*  He  is  going  to  tell  you  in  a  very  few  minutes  his  exper- 
ience along  the  lines  of  Vocational  Training. 

ViRm   BECICSH:  Ilr.  Chairman,  I  had  quite  an  ui>- 

fortunate  experience  in  the  Vocational  Training.  I  was  located 


■T;tyf-  i.ttrn$.^'i^^>  ^i 


,   ■:r:t> ' 


;-.i 


{  »  X:''  <^iyitj^''.' 


M    .  •.!>'  "Vfrc^: 


•t--'  rs  f ; 


J  i: 


-•.^;^ 


^t  ttbd  i 


■^'Ul#  -< 


-!i 


42, 

last  sunrner.at  Hospital  No,3,  Colonial,  iJev;  Jersey,  and  mad© 
application  for  vocational  training.  The  Captain  up  there  told 
me  it  v/ould  take  about  six  weeks.  Well,  I  figured  I  v/ould  "be 
discharged  the  first  of  August,  hut  through  another  operation 
I  an  not  out  <ret,  and  I  am  going  tc  "be  discharged  tcnorro\7»  But 
this  is  3.  good  case.  New,  that  six  weeks  would  have  heen  Tap  the 
first  cf  August,  if  I  did  net  have  a  seccnd  operation.  I  got  a 
letter  ahout  the  fifth  cr  sixth  cf  August,  from  NeTZ  York,  467 
Fifth  Avenue,  stating,  "Please  call  at  this  office,  as  we  desire 
seme  more  infcrmation  regarding  your  application."  Now,  that 
shows  as  the  Senator  from  Utah  says,  that  there  are  too  many 
fingers  in  the  pie,  cthervase  too  raany  employes. 

*  And  now,  I  an  down  here  at  Walter  Reed  Hospital.  Octo- 
ber 9th,  they  closed  up  No.  3  hale  and  hearty,  good  and  healthy. 
I  \'?ant  tc  get  out.  I  have  been  fighting  every  day  to  get  out  and 
I  am  just  getting  out  tomorrow.  I  want  to  get  out,  I  am  losing 
time  and  everything  else,  and  iny  discharge  is  just  going  throu^ 
tomorrow. 

Now,.  Jiere  I  am,  three  months  here  I  am  trying  to  get 
out,  I  am  halo  and  hoarty,  nothing  the  matter  v/ith  me,  only  a  log 
off,  and  I  am  hore  yet. 

And  hore  is  another  case.  I  go  down  tOibuy  some  clothes. 
I  have  not  got  this  artificial  log  yet*  I  am  on  crutches.  I  buy  two 
suits  of  winter  underwear,  tv.-o  O.D.  shirts,  one  coat,  one  pair  cf 
pants,  one  pair  cf  leggins,  one  pair  cf  shoes.  I  figured  I  can't 


;  ? 'r. 


i...' 


■'-•] 


nwi 


4  -.:•?'.  i)  I      .  ,' 


43 
carry  the  overcoat,  it  cakes  a  bundle  that  big,  (Indicating  size.) 
I  am  dov/n  at  ward  #86,  about  a  half-nile  fron  Q.  M.  These  people 
down  at  the  Q.  U.  want  me  to  carry  these  clothes  over  on  crutches, 
and  I  tell  then  I  can't  do  it.  I  walked  over  to  the  phone  and  I 
saidi  "Can  I  use  tho  phone?'*  They  h^d   two  girl  stenographers,  and 
I  was  going  to  call  up  Col.  Blennon*  As  soon  as  she  saw  I  wis  go- 
ing tc  call  -Qp   Col*  Blennon  she  said,  "Oh,  wait  a  minute,"  and 
grabbed  the  phone  cut  cf  ny  hand*  All  right.  She  called  up  the 
ward  and  she  said^  "Send  an  orderly  up  here  tc  help  Becker  carry 
his  clothes-**  (Applause.) 

IK.  UILLER:        There  is  another  point  that  Mr# 
Becker  wants  to  bring  out. 

UR.  BECXER:        Well,  about  this  compensation,  of 
course  I  have  not  been  discharged  yet,  but  I  understand  that  the 
nen  are  being  discharged  without  being  told  what  they  are  getting. 
Now,  of  course,  when  I  was  on  the  road  I  was  a  conductor  in  the  y£.rds, 
Yard  conductor  is  a  good  deal  ncre  dangerous  than  road  conductor. 
I  an  continwally  jumping  on  and  off  cars,  I  am  cutting  then 
loose  and  letting  them  go  to  all  points  and  all  different  tracks, 
and  I  climb  in  and  cut  of  nud  cars.   I  have  a  niddle  third 
amputation.  I  do  not  know  what  I  will  get  on  this  compensation. 
They  tell  me  the  men  being  discharged  are  not  being  told  what  they 
may  get. 

IIR.  lULLEB:       What  is  your  rating 

MR.  BECKER:        Why,  my  rating  is  |;42.00  a  week. 

ItR.  IHLLER:       In  the  army. 


'.rri 


•\  t  i 


1  -J 


i  ."T^^fiCt., 


''!^ti'    T 


'. :  ;.(: 


'■  x-v 


.  :i   r-:c(?.v,/3L 


44. 

MR,  BECKER:      No,  on  the  railroad. 

MR.  MILLHl:      What  do  you  get  -  your  corapensation? 

MR.  BECK3R:      Well,  it  is  sixty«three  per  cent  dis- 
ability.   I  don't  know  what  it  is,  they  have  not  told  me.   About 
$16.00  a  month. 

SENATOR  SUTHEHLAM)?   What  did  the  Vocational  Training 
people  do  for  you? 

MR»  BECKER  J    Ko  results;   that  is  the  last  I  heard 
of  it.   Of  course,  I  have  not  been  over  to  Fifth  Avenue,  because 
I  am  not  out  of  the  hospital.   I  am  not  discharged  yet.   But  that  is 
just  a  case.   If  I  had  been  discharged  the  first  of  August  -^  I  lost 
n^  people  —  I  haven't  got  a  home  —  I  could  have  been  out  with 
that  $60.00>  and  what  would  I  have  done?   I  would  have  had  to  wait 
maybe  six  or  ten  weeks  until  the  crder  went  through.   If  I  ana  dis- 
charged when  this  Vocational  Order  goes  through  I  do  not  get  this 
compensation.   I  would  get  that  $60.00  and  I  would  have  to  wait  six 
or  ten  weeks  before  I  couid  get  straightened  out,  and  there  I  would 
have  been  with  $60.00  I  thank  you. 

MR.  IIILLUR:      Private  Becker  will  get  Ol8»00  a 

month.   I  want  Private  Levy  of  New  York  City  to  tell  you  what  he 

is  up  against. 

PRIVATE  LEVYt    Gentlemen,  my  case  is  similar  to 
Private  Nelson's  case,  only  I  get  less.   (Laughter  and  applause.) 

I^  case,  is  similar  to  every  fifen's  case  in  that  Hospital.   They  are 

all  alike.   I  have  a  wife  to  support.   I  am  a  first  class  private, 

drawing  ^0  a  month,  and  I  have  a  wife  to  support  which  takes  $15 


T  •,  . 


y  ;.l^i 


t- 


i     ^'•^•••■^     r^ 


"i.jjv'-.   >■.■■,/.:.  f.' 


/A.' 


-=   >       •    -v       •  ,  ^ 


.?.'■'    J. 


:■'! 


45» 

away.     OSien  I  have  instirance  which  takes  ^,60  away,     1  also  have 
a  father  at  home,  and  have  a  sister,  a  small  sister  and  "brother. 
My  father  is  only  a  worldLng  nan,   striaggling  to  get  along,  and  I 
allot  ^5  to  him,  which  is  no  more  than  right  after  what  he  has 
done  for  me.   (Applause.) 

I  am  not  the  only  man  in  the  hospital  in  the  same 
predicament,  and  what   I    would  like  to  have  is  immediate  action 
so  that  something  could  "be  done  to  remedy  this. 

I  am  going  in  debt  every  day  vihile   I  am  in  this  hos- 
pital, str!:;ggling  to  get  along.     I  don't  know  how  my  wife  caji 
get  along  on  ^^30  a  month.     I  will  he  in  this  hospital  for  six  or 
eight  months  to  come,  as  several  of  the  other  "boys  will  be  alsOf 
Nov;,   I  was  supposed  to  be  discharged  about   last  week,  and  they 
siiggested  ny  taking  a  ninety  daytf*   furlough,     Vi/hile  I  am  doing 
it,  they  say  it   is  for  ny  own  good,  and   I  am  going  to  do  it  —  I 
am  going  to  take  the  ninety  days»   furlough,  which  should  start 
this  week,  and  I  would  like  to  know  how  I  am  going  to  live,  how 
the  tv;o  of  us  are  going  to  live,   on  4>30  a  month  while  I  am  home, 
I  don't  know  how  I  am  going  to  make  ends  meet.     While  I  am  away 
I  draw  forty  cents  a  day  ration  money.     I  do  not  think  anybody 
could  live  on  forty  cents  a  day  very  well  these  days, 

V/ell,   I  don't  think  I  have  any  more  to  say  just  now. 
I  think  I  have  said  enough,   stated  ny  case;  and  every  case  in 
the  hospital  is  the  same  or  similar.     What  the  boys  need  is  imme- 
diate action  right  away  to  help  them  out* 

OSiank  you. 


I        i 


•i'S'i.', 


•U^'.'l    .:  -^^ 


r;.{     ! 


'  .if-  ij 


-.-  ^.*i(;        .     -4-^1:,,.'.    ,;..^.  ;j  ^^     .. 


•■    -  '^31      JL\f      ■     .  ■.^:  ■  -.-^     ^;^■-;  ;      .     • .-. 


':^<"  ■'   »':i    .7x 


'■'    '■•*:,  cr    ^A 


f  T^. 


J 


46. 

HE  .MILLER:  Private  Levy,  what  do  you  get  in 

your  pay  eiivelope  per  month  nox7? 

PRI\!i&.:icE  LE'TT:  #6.50 

OC3»;E'!liSir.3R  D-OLIIHs  You  have  that  and  forty  cents  a 
day  to  live  on  during  the  next  three  months? 

gRIVATE  LEVY:      During  the  next  three  months  I 
have  forty  cents  to  live  on«  and  that  forty  cents  I  don't  get 
♦til  I  come  tack.   (Laughter  and  applause.) 

PRXVA.TE  L:A^TH.E^S:  If  that  chap  hy  railroad  acci- 
dent or  mishap  in  the  railroad  gets  Jsack  twenty-four  hours  late 
he  forfeits  that  forty  cents  a  day.   He  gets  his  pay,  his  pay  la 
given  him,  "but  he  forfeits  that  little  forty  cents  a  day,  which 
amounts  to  $36o00  for  the  time  he  is  away.    if  he  is  twenty-four 
hours  late  he  forfeits  that a 

,  MR.  MILLER:       Gentlemen,  that  is  private 
Eatthev;B  from  Virginia.   you  will  heap  from  him  a  little  hit 
later  more  in  detail. 

We  would  not  "be  complete  at  this  meeting  without  a 
memher  of  the  Chamber  upstairs,  the  House  of  Representatives, 
who,  although  he  was  over  the  age  of  the  draft,  felt  it  his 
duty  to  go  into  a  training  camp  as  a  private  soldier.   Royal 
Johnson  needs  no  introduction  to  you  gentlemen,   (Applause,) 

HON,  ROYM,  C,  JDHKSON  (SCuth  Dakota);  Speed  will 
be  my  middle  name  in  the  few  remarks  I  have  to  make,  because 
I  have  learned  in  the  bitter  school  of  the  House  what  every 
man  haa  to  learn,  that  he  is  very  lucky  if  he  gets  two  minutes. 


?r„    ?*••>;    ■'.a:    {■,  '  :    -^iL.; 


;■  -i    -v  r 


n  .!  J  « ■.-  t.'i; 


ir.oi.^'v?    >•    ■';j;ri 


'):.    'H-   > 


'^c-cF:;?^ 


■  -rp 


47m, 

•*ere  ts  imoth^r  reason  xOiy   I  shall  talk  very  fast  and  very  much 
to  tb©  point c   If  I  Fhofild  attemr/i   to  ezteul  ny  lemarks  in  the 
Record  toni^it,  some  of  my  gooci  friends  on  the  left^  who  have 
had  some  hitter  experiences  in  the  sohool  of  the  Argoime  and  dif- 
ferent places,  m>uld  he  very  likely  to  rise  up  in  their  wrath 
and  say,  "Well^  let^s  go",  and  the  chan^jes  are  i  would  he  forced 
to  go»   Now,  T  am  going  to  talk  as  fast  and  to  use  as  mush  speed 
as  some  of  my  friends  did  in  the  s)Snu  Division  in  the  Argonne. 
You  know  thore  are  a  good  many  things  we  do  not  care 
to  tell  about  the  waro   i  do  not  care  to  tell  ahout  some  of  the 
unpleasant  things  that  happ&x).ed  in  t}je  Argonne,  Chaceau  Thler:ry 
and  other  places;  and  there  are  some  of  you,  x  mi£^t  say,  who 
do  not  care  to  tell  ahout  the  pler^sant  things  that  happened  in 
the  Battle  of  pai'is,    (i,^.ughtGr) 

Bat  I  can  talk  ahout  one  feature  of  the  war  we  can  all 
agree  upon,  and  that  is  the  experi.enoe  of  every  man  who  got  any", 
where  near  a  machxne  gun,  or  got  up  against  anything  of  that  kind 
he  wafl  very  anx?.ous  to  remove  h5.mself  fyom  that  particular  spot, 
Nowj,  that  was  a  chcracterlstio  of  every  race,  every  man  that  was 
in  the  showo 

5S?o  of  these  men  from  the  92nd  Division,  who  v/orked  up 
through  the  fire  one  day,  until  they  commenced  to  hear  this  that 
you  axe  acasustomed  to  hear  (indicating  sound  of  machine  gun)  -  they 
came  closer  and  heard  that  (indicating  sound)  that  sounded  like 
that.   &f  course,  they  went  down  in  a  shell  hole,  like  many  of  you 
gentlemen  have  done;  and  they  got  up  closer  and  heard  that 


;    C 


<v     t\ 


ii    <  *iT?df? 


.>^'"    ^.-(f    f: 


'•^i:'  -i '■::.'. 


'■      '"i^    ^^O''* 


46. 

(indicating  noise)  Buzz  and  Bang  •••  And  they  went  dcjvni  agja-in^ 
like  cany  of  you  have  done,  like  all  of  you  "would  have  don©  if 
you  had  the  opportunity,  and  they  decided  it  "was  time  for  them 
to  TrithdratT,     They  -n-ere  going  down  one  of  those  big,  wide,  French 
roads  that  always  looked  so  good  to  you  when  you  were  going  hack. 
And  to  those  of  you  who  were  not  there,  I  want  to  call  your  at- 
tention to  the  fact  that  along  those  roads  every  f ive-eigjhths  of 
a  mile  or  a  kilometer  was  a  beautiful  white  post  ctflled  a  kilo- 
meter post.     I  never  knew  why  they  had  th^i  every  five-eigjiths  of 
a  mile  because  I  am  not  familiar  with  the  politics  in  France,  and 
I  don't  know  how  eri^  lame  ducks  they  had  to  take  care  of,  but 
they  certainly  had  a  good  E&ny  on  every  read. 

Those  two  boys  of  the  92nd  were  hurrying  back,  and 
th^  were  going  some.     One  of  then  said,  "My  God,  but  that  am  a 
long  fence  we  are  passing."     The  other  said,  "Nigger,  that  ain't 
no  fence,  them  are  kilometer  posts."     They  were  naking  speed  just 
like  I  am,  going  one  a  minute. 

I  am  mighty  glad  to  be  here  tonight,  for  your  distin- 
guished presiding  officer  is  one  of  the  few  remaining  in  the 
Senate,  because  every  other  Senator  is  a  candidate  for  the  Presi- 
dency.    Sometimes  I  feel  tcjwards  him  like  one  Quaker  Friend  did 
towards  the  other  when  he  said,  "All  of  the  world  is  dishonest, 
except  me  and  thee,  and  sometimes  I  have  xsy  doubts  about  thee." 
That  is  with  reference  to  the  gentlenan  from  Indiana. 

It  is  always  a  pleasure  to  be  present  when  Uncle  Joe 
cannon  is  here.      It  is  really  unfair  to  some  of  us  younger  fellows. 


A.         -♦,    -;       . 


"'   f        *' 


.■:'/.-'^  rvr/^.':.    ■':'?::  ];.•■('  =::■  *"  r  ;■•  ■•;  :  ."    ':      ':   ■:■ 


'    ■''  ..■    ■■■'"1.  ■; 


*:;;/r-  ; 


'.-.f 


y,  •j'  .-S  -    - 


V     ••^  :(T.*y. 


•^^.  fc.M- 


»/::i     tr:    ,;■ 


«--.•'%       ».  .. . 


'n-^   ■:  :;r..:::'n',  •:■•- 


"'"J.;"'*-.''.''-    .''■.,    *'",■'': 


(■   '■ 


-•f    ■-'(■    .:'.<-y 


'■;  r 


^-  .{■ 


:•:<:  .h-. ''.^ 


■  v».  y. 


•->.    .     .  J.       ..       J. 


a..* 


•■■■.■  ir"''  ■u'":'>   ■"■  :i 


49. 
with  only  five  or  six  years*  e?:perience,  to  put  us  up  against  a 
member  like  that.  You  do  not  realize  that  he  has  served  in  the 
House  of  Representatives  since  nine  years  before  I  was  "born,  and 
he  is  going  strong  yet.  It  is  some  rjatisfaction  to  some  of  us 
yct'nger  members  that  we  might  reach  his  record,  because,  as  I 
s*id  before,  he  is  a  comparatively  yotmg  man  yet. 

Another  reason  why  I  am  glad  to  be  here  tonight  is 
because  of  the  presence  of  the  distinguished  gentleman  from  Dela- 
ware* I  can  testify  that  he  is  the  only  Colonel  in  the  United 
States  Army  that  I  ever  knew  or  ever  heard  of  that  a  Second  Lieut- 
enant could  go  in  after  he  had  slept  on  the  ground  and  roll  him 
out  of  his  bed  and  take  his  place  without  the  Colonel  resenting 
the  intrusion. 

Another  reason  that  X  am  glad  to  be  here  is  because 
these  men  at  the  various  hospitals  will  commence  to  realize  that 
the  .American  Legion  is  willing  to  present  their  case  and  it  can 
be  presented,  and  I  thipk  it  has  been  more  ably  presented  by 
these  men  tonight  than  all  of  the  members  of  the  House  and  Senate 
could  present  it,  and  I  only  wish  they  could  talk  to  the  entire 
meinbership,  and  I  wish  they  could  go  down  and  talk  to  the  heads 
of  the  different  Departments  who  want  to  move  things,  but  who 
seem  to  be  unable  to  get  the  personnel  and  the  force  that  will 
push  things  along  the  way  they  should  be  pushed.  Unless  we  are 
going  to  have  the  Ugly  Head  of  Bolshevism  rise  up  in  our  midst, 
some  of  the  things  that  we  have  listened  to  are  absolutely  true, 
and  they  are  the  kind  of  things  that  we  can't  let  go  in  this 


50, 

co-untry.     l!he  on3y  way  to  keep  them  below  tlie  surface  Is  to  meet 
the  honest,  fair,  demands  of  these  men. 

yiy  ovm  feeling  is  that  we  should  start   out  with  the 
bontis.     Some  of  the  men  differ  with  me  in  that,  hut   I  can  call 
attention  to  the  fact  that  the  American  Legion  is  on  record,  I 
think  with  an  amendment. 

It  might  he  well  for  everyone  to  read  it,  because  it 
says  much  between  the  lines. 

I  can  coQly  say  ny  time  has  expired,  and  I  would  be 
proT3d  to  sit  here  and  listen  to  the  rest  of  these  men  \Jiio  have 
given  so  much  that  the  rest   of  us  could  not  give  for  the  protec- 
tion of  their  country,  that  their  Flag  might  be  triumphant. 
(Applause.) 

M.  MILLER:  For  the  benefit   of  all  of  the  men 

in  the  hospital  today,   I  will  say  that  the  speaker  who  just 
closed  had  forty-five  square  inches  of  his  back  taken  out  by  an 
H.E.  shell,  and  he  knows  what  it  is  to  be  in  the  hospital  on  this 
side  and  that  side. 

There  is  a  point  that  we  have  not  touched  on  toni^t 
yet.     0]he  American  Legion  is  on  record  as  favoring  legislation 
covering  it.     We  want  to  see  the  enlisted  personnel  and  the  com- 
missioned personnel  of  the  National  Arny  and  the  National  Guard 
retired  for  disability  on  the  same  ground  that  the  officers'   en- 
listed personnel  of  the  regular  arny  are  retired  i^on  when  they 
are  disabled.     There  is  vT.  wounded  officer  over  there,  Lt.  Graham, 
of  the  old  109th  Infantry,   28th  Division.      I  want  to  have  a  word 
from  him  on  that  point.        (Applaiise.) 


>.' 


•  i'l. 


'v^/'Dj.  r,ro., 


Arxq   .ri-  'x:,, 


:.l 


f       '•■'    n 


't    y    .1. 


r. 


:-:.\r 


51. 

LIEUTENANT  GRAHAI^:  Just  a  fern   facts.  The  first  citation 
that  wag  made  overseas  cited  especially  the  First,  Second,  Third, 
Fourth,  Twenty-sixth,  Twenty-eighth,  Thirty-seoond  and  Forty-second 
Divisions.  Four  of  these  divisions  were  regular  divisions,  four  were 
of  the  National  Guard.  The  Regular  Army   divisions  were  partially  of- 
ficered by  reserv2  and  National  Anuy  officers,  or  rather,  I  should 
say  almost  largely  officered  by  teinporary  officers.  The  decision  of 
the  United  States  Congress  is  proper,  for  the  retirement  of  Regular 
Army  officers  is  considered  the  proper  method  where  the  men  are  per- 
manently disabled. 

After  leaving  the  training  camps  men,  under  tv;enty-six 
years  of  age,  cany  of  them,  were  commissioned  provisional  lieutenants 
in  the  Reg^i.lar  Army.  These  men  are  retired  on  three-fourths  pay  with 
the  regular  officers.  The  men  over  twenty-six  years  of  age,  v/ho  gave 
up  tlieir  professions,  who  gave  Tip  their  business  and  everything  to  go 
in  voluntarily  and  serve  as  officers,  are  simply  discharged  on  a  per- 
centage, I  believe,  of  thirty  dollars  a  month.  This  is  a  decided  dis- 
crimination against  the  National  Guard,  the  Reserve  Corps,  and  the 
National  Array  officers.  For  example,  an  old  army  man  who  is  here  this 
evening,  with  one  arm  gone  and  one  leg  disabled,  and  who  has  been  in 
the  service  some  twenty  years  as  a  Sergeant  in  the  Regular  AriDy,  was 
commissioned  during  the  recent  war.  He  is  at  present  physically  dis- 
abled, cannot  return  to  the  Regular  Army,  and  is  simply  disr^harged 
uiidiar  the  Compensation  Act,  although  he  lias  served  Y;ith  the  best  of 


the  HeguiAl-  Arniy  officers  In  foreign  service^ 

An  old  National  Guard  Colonel,  sixty  years  of  age,  who 
coinnanded  a  regiment  of  field  artillery,  who  through  action  has  a 
leg  gone  and  a  "bad  skull  wound,  and  who  has  icade  his  mark  inlife, 
has  a  standing  which  his  family  must  live  up  to;  and  he  is  dis- 
charged on  a  percentage  of  thirty  dollars  a  month,   A  provisioiiftl 
Lieutenant,  a  man  under  twenty-six  years  of  age,  who  went  to  the 
first  training  camp,  a  provisional  lieutenant,  got  smashed  up  a 
tit  in  a  railroad  wreck,  has  a  fractured  shin  and  is  discharged, 
or  rather  retired  on  three-fourths  pay  for  the  rest  of  his  life. 
A  young  west  point  man  out  of  the  point  one  year,  served  in  the 
war  at  Washington,  has  a  flat  foot  and  is  retired  on  three-fourths 
pay.    (Laughter). 

lOy  whole  point  is  that  this  First  Lieutenant  in  the 
Guard,  who  has  served  over  twenty  years  in  the  National  Guard, 
has  been  discharged  from  the  service  and  draws  a  percentage  of 
thirty  dollars  a  month,  with  a  wife  and  four  children.   Before 
he  went  into  the  service  his  pay  was  about  four  thousand  dollars 
a  year.   Marine  Corps  and  Navy  officers^  we  Tinderstand,  are  being 
retired  wJth  the  same  status,  that  is,  temporary  officers  on  the 
same  status  as  the  regular  officers  of  that  service.   We  under- 
stand that  over  two  thousand  officers  have  jrecently  been  retired 
at  Governor's  island,  but  that  very  few  of  them  have  wounds. 

We  are  not  kicking  against  the  system  of  the  Regular 


■>•<■•■    t^U''  ■'■'■   ^"--^'r^y;  \;;:f:?:^3    ,J'r.'?^r  •'   *?r:i:i^^   I . 'r*; jc :r ';r,5   h/v,  nji 
.-'ft'j'c   :>'(«  T!    urf  ofc/'^^  ;:;•:[   -^-f-v  &itc    ,&riv/o-'  .Uc  nfs   \y'x    r   im  ^    >.r:i-:  ■  ■  i 
I     .:;.lvr"vi:    -.       •  ;■' ■-.•I'ur  r   oicji.lof'  'i^J-rri.t  ':.o  r,:i.  -':':..  :'T  •■ '  f*   •;  .*   l-:<\  '■' 

.:''i.!i.   ^ji/f   i  :i  ^r^vi.    ;■.-'    Tol  •(:/t:T  ;:;{.^  "x  JO  ^-^.o'Ta  *   n:;  h  "<:!^-  •   •>'■   :':Tt  no 

.^•'i.r'\r:  .'£0^-:^   ',;.; '^T  ■;■•<;    '^:V^'.■J.  irx.'^ci^Vi'''   '/■u^'i'-T'-j    '/:'j   "r/'-^-o  ,yfyL*i  l:?-:*'}^. 


53. 

Army,  we  think  it  is  proper  and  just  for  the  officers  of  the  Reg- 
ular Army  who  are  disabled;  but  we  think  if  it  is  fair  for  them  it 
is  fair  for  all. 

At  the  Walter  Reed  and  all  other  hospitals  we  have  many 
officers  who  are  permanently  disabled  for  life.  So  far  we  are  not 
able  to  find  out  whether  we  are  even  entitled  to  10^  or  100^  dis- 
ability. Since  last  spring  I  have  been  personally  trying  to  find 
out  whether  I  can  take  Federal  Vocational  Training,  and  so  far  I 
have  not  teen  atle  to  find  out  what  I  can  take.  I  am  at  the  present 
time  thirty  years  old,  I  am  young  coinpared  to  many  of  the  officers. 
National  Guard  Officers,  first  lieutenants,  many  of  them  are  forty- 
five,  and  yet  the  only  thing  they  can  do  to  relieve  the  present 
emergency  is  to  take  Federal  Vocational  Training  at  ^80,00  a  month 
and  train  to  start  in  life  again,  when  they  are  already  past  the 
mature  age. 

We  understand  that  the  only  opposition  against  this  is 
that  the  same  mistake  was  made  during  the  Spanish  and  Civil  V/ar, 
but  that  is  no  reason  why  another  mistake  should  be  made.  We  also 
understood  that  this  war  was  fought  to  make  the  world  safe  for 
Democracy,  and  yet  when  v/e  return,  although  we  fought  alongside 
Regular  Army  officers,  although  we  bore  the  brunt  of  the  burden  — 
and  there  is  no  National  Aray  or  lf;vtional  Gaari  Regiment  that  is 
ashamed  of  its  record  —  yet,  at  the  same  time,  when  we  returned 


in   :■:.  ■ 


'ij;..'   .  t.. 


;,'. 


>•/".,■•;'  I 


■>      ,      -      •    r 


>  i    ;'    r.     iv; 


-.'      ",Ji: 


'i^ZlL 


t  ?i 


■;>  a;  ■    ,  .. 


r.   •  (C    •' 


•j    :.vr 


r.     '{  i' :  ^        ' 


r.  J 


,*.*;•  !'■■•:    ■■■..•  r'fjfir; 


,  I 


i   '■        '     ' . '■;  •  '■  i 


-54- 

after  fighti.-fig  to  laalce  the  world  safe  for  Democraoy,  we  find  that 
the  temporary  officer  is  discharged  on  a  percentage  of  thirty 
dollars  a  month,  while  the  regular  officer  and  the  youngsters 
under  twenty-six  are  retired  on  three-fourths  pay  for  life. 
(Applause.) 

MR.  MILLSR:   It  is  now  eleven  o'clock,  gentlemen, 
"but  I  think  if  Uncle  Joe  Gannon  can  show  that  he  is  wide  awake 
and  listening,  his  colleagues  of  either  House  will  not  mind 
staying  here  a  few  minutes  longer  so  that  we  can  finish  our 
program, 

I  want  to  call  upon  Congressman  Sweet  of  Iowa,  the 
author  of  the  bill  that  needs  no  description,  except  that  we 
want  it  put  through  the  Senate,  in  the  words  of  the  French, 
"toot  sweet."  (Applause.) 

HCITORABLE  BURTON  E.  SV/EET  (lOV/A)  i  Mr.   Chairman, 
Gentlemen  of  the  Senate  and  House,  Memters  of  the  American 
Legion,  and  Soldier  Boys  from  Walter  Reed  Hospital: 

I  have  listened  with  unusual  interest  to  the  state- 
ments and  the  speeches  that  have  heen  made  this  evening. 

We  are  now  passing  through  a  reconstruction  period 
following  a  mighty  war.  Many  unusual  problems  confront  us  as 
a  nation  and  a  people.  Many  questions  are  demanding  immediate 
solution.  There  is  universal  unrest  throughout  the  country. 
Production  has  failed  to  keep  up  with  consumption.   35ie  cost 


•  'ir/.  oat-    'ji<''i  ':..  :^f.'i' 


•,-.  }  r     ..•-,•». 


1   -.rv^  i 


v'^r   Oi:  ../•    ;  t;    r.z ■.>'■■    .\    lU: 


ir'^it.    :■    V  ":-oJ.U/i 


•ry   v-v;(.;i. 


i    :.'.*    v>C,  l^iii     ".. ;'.   li-'  ..v ;;■;...; 


^  65  - 
of  living  is  mounting  higher  and  higher.   The  parchasing  power 
of  the  dollar  is  less  than  one-half  of  what  it  was  prior  to  the 
war.  Labor  and  Capital  are  contending  for  supremacy.  The  rail- 
way prohlem  must  he  solved.  Qhey  must  be  unscrambled,  if  possible, 
aaie  lawless,  the  I.W.W. ,  the  Anarchists,  the  Bolshevists,  and  the 
Reds,  the  enemies  of  our  form  of  Goveriiment,  must  be  taken  care 
of  by  proper  legislation*  This  elemont  must  be  stamped  out  by 
force,  if  need  be.  America  must  not  be  the  breeding  ground  for 
this  type  and  character  of  men.  Ohey  must  understand  that  every 
true  American  has  respect  for  the  Constitution  and  the  laws  en- 
acted thereunder,  and  is  in  favor  of  law  and  order.  Let  them 
understand  once  for  all  that  Imerioa  is  for  Americans.  (Applause. ) 
And  when  I  say  Americans  I  mean  native  and  naturalized  Americans, 
who  are  in  harmony  with  the  fundamentals  of  our  institutions  and 
in  accord  with  the  spirit  and  genius  of  our  civilization. 

While  we  are  engrossed  with  these  mighty  problems  we 
imist  not  forget  those  who  took  part  in  the  great  war.  GSios©  who 
left  their  homes  and  loved  ones;  those  who  left  their  business  to 
the  care  and  keeping  of  their  friends;  those  who  went  across  three 
thousand  miles  of  sea  to  vindicate  the  honor  and  integrity  of  our 
Government;  those  who  defended  the  flag  on  foreign  soil;  those  ^o 
gave  their  very  lifeblood  and  endured  the  hell  of  battle  that  our 
cause  might  be  triumphant. 

What  is  our  full  duty  to  them?  The   dead  are  beyond  our 
power  to  add  or  detract.  What  about  their  families,  their  wives, 

and  children,  and  those  who  were  dependent  upon  them? 


,•,..-     ^i'-  '\r- /;*»•: i   ■      ■•.■?         .'i-.-,     •:;   j.  ,;■■■■""'  -^    ;••••  «<tr.   :•!•  r     ■;..■.•     •. ' 

.    ■-•'     ";■   '    ].'.     ,\:~  :  .  *  ■  i,,," ■ './   ;> .'    j';:;v';  .      ■''.■\-    "i    "  v-  •    ■'•''     •!    .• '< 

•>'.:    ,-u^    ^^'t/      '     "j',;.  -i     ••t-ii    ,r!lf;xjt'  '      ^^    -•.''>    ,     7/,  ..  ■.     .^  "     ,  "  '■:     V    •  •!, 

•■' '•  ■n  /•♦-i/ii.- 1     J    -r-.;  ■;     ''-■•/:-,::'":'.iV'   •    r>   "  ■   J   "■:^'    '->'   :'•    '.    '■:-.'    '-.'■    ,-■.■■ 

r.t    •»;;•    ;■,!-•  •;•>;!    :'/    , .  ^■...   «.:*^oC-       ■   ■{        .:■";■:    '-.  ;   ,.:    •.•■.'■■    ^;  . 
'::o;j    ?<■;•■     -iart"^'"'^-;        '*    ■  ■'■      "n    :  •  .Jin  .  r;  ;*:;•«..■■:  „      .'••;  '■>•■>'.     .'     ,^•>,* 

>  .  :;'     •'  ,    a;        •■•'•■      !■■■•    '..   •>    '.;■    .■.;•--.,      ;..    yrni    \  i-     •  ••..••    •  -.  •.  l<:.-«:,  ;.;• 

..     '..  i\  •  . :  ■■'  .  '    f.'!i:   'j.51'^  'b.   !^  ^  ^-^  .    :.ru'\      r< ;    .       /:     .^■:,.,■■•;'^   ci  ■     ■  ■  .■'     '  :,. 


:'-V   : 


I   ••\.ji 


f '; . 


■c;    ;  '•  •     ?H': 


';t    r^ 


'V       ;£.'>;/ 


?;'.^  fvi 


■■   -.",;;   -/^..' 


56, 

^liat  about  th.e  living?  What  about  those  who  have  been 
maimed,  th^ir  bodies  torn  by  shot  and  shell,  or  perbaps  ravished 
by  disease?  Those  v/ho  are  resting  tonight  upon  beds  of  pain? 

V/hat  can  we  do  for  them?  What  should  we  do  for  them 
as  a  grateful  people,  remembering  the  sacrifices  they  made,  the 
hardships  they  endured  and  the  dangers  they  encountered?  What 
can  we  do  to  show  our  gratitude? 

Someone  has  said  that  "Gratitude  is  the  fairest  flower 
that  sheds  its  perfume  in  the  heart," 

I  say  to  you  tonight  that  a  nation  that  will  not  de- 
fend its  defenders  and  protect  its  protectors  is  a  disgrace  to 
the  map  of  the  World,   (Applause.) 

Some  have  advocated  giving  them  land  on  easy  terms. 
Some  have  advocated  loaning  them  money  at  a  lov;  rate  of  interest 
and  for  a  long  period  of  time.  Some  have  proposed  that  they  be 
given  a  bonus.  Some  have  advocated  that  they  be  paid  at  the 
rate  of  thirty  dollars  per  month  for  every  month  they  served, 
and  fractional  part  thereof. 

All  these  plans  have  their  advocates  and  are  good  as 
far  as  they  go,  but  none  of  them,  it  seems  to  me,  meet  the  im- 
mediate needs  of  the  disabled  soldiers  and  those  dependent  upon 
them  for  sustenance,  clothing  and  support. 

On  October  6,  1917,  Congress  enacted  the  War  Risk  In- 
surance Act-  The  bill  is  divided  into  four  parts  —  Title  I 


'^i.i'.i.  •:  '".•' 


W:  •    ■}■■:  'f.-': 


1    i.      J  c;.,'  1  .  ......      '. ;■     )       -;.  J. 


:i  ;;:.;::: 


'.V''     I 


i    r  I  '■>'> 


57: 

relates  to  the  organization  of  the  Bureau  —  Title  II  relates  to 
allot meaits  and  family  allowances  --  Title  III  relates  to  cornpensa 
tion  to  be  paid  in  case  of  deatli  or  disability  —  Title  IV  relates 
to  insurance  payable  in  case  of  death  or  total  disability. 

The  objects  and  purposes  of  the  Act  v/ere  to  take  care  of 
the  families  of  the  soldiers,  sailors  and  marines,  their  wives, 
children  and  those  who  were  dependent  updU  them,  while  they  were 
fighting  the  battles  of  the  Republic.  It  v;as  v;ar  legislation. 
This  is  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  Nation  that  leg- 
islation of  this  character  has  been  enacted  prior  to  the  close  of 
a  war.  Our  pension  legislation  has  always  been  enacted  after  the 
war. 

Now  that  the  vmr  is  over  what  can  be  done  to  make  the 
War  Risk  Insurance  law  meet  the  inmediate  demands  and  needs  of 
the  disabled  soldiers,  sailors  and  inalfines,  and  their  dependent? 

The  allotment  and  family  allov^ance  features  will  soon 
become  inoperative,  for  they  relate  solely  to  war  conditions. 

The  compensation  features  should  be  amended  to  meet 
the  existing  conditions —  first,  as  to  the  condition  of  disabled 
soldiers,  as  measured  by  their  earning  capacity  in  civil  oc- 
cupations —  second,  to  meet  the  ever  increasing  cost  of  living. 

The  insurance  features  should  be  liberalized  and  mad© 
more  attractive. 

T!be  organizatioii  and  management  of  the  Bureau  should 


,C.t   '      ;     .. 


58 

be  made  more  efficiant. 

On  Septf^moer  ]3th  the  House  passed  a  bill  amending  and 
modifying  thy  Wai'  ,Ri.3i:  Ir'iuranc^  act,  keeping  in  mind  at  all  times 
the   Lrsmf^.dir.tQ  ail  iJip-i^sti-^e  deiTiPnd:?  of  the   disabled  soldiers, 
sailors  ami  rriariur^s  &}yl  "^.lirir  dope rid^n^is. 

In  t>iis  ?'ixl  coirrcon^ajicn  for  disabled  soldiers  was  al- 
most trebled.     Unciir  the  present  law  a  soldier  without  dependents 
receiv3s  for  total  temporary  disability  not  to  exceed  thirty 
dollars  per  months 

Under  the  bill  passed  by  the  House  he  will  receive  eighty 
dollars  per  month.      If  he  has  a  wife  and  children  he  will  receive 
more   than  that. 

The  compensation  features  of  the  bill  are  made  retroactive 
and  if  it   is  passed  by  tho  Senate   in  its  present  form  the   Government 
will  iiTimediately  pay  to  di&abled  soldiers,  sailors  and  marines  over 
fourteen  million  dollars,   in  acoorc'ar.ce  v/lth  this  phase   of  the  bill. 

It  has  been  reported  to  mo   that   in  many  instances  disabled 
soldiers  are  borrowing  money  from  the  Red  Cross  and  their  relatives 
and  friends   in  order  that   they  may  have   sufficient  funds   to  tide 
them  over  ur^til   tho  bill  becomes  a  law.      They  simply  cannot  exist 
on  the  coirpensation  they  are  now  receiving.      It   is  not  a  theory  that 
confronts  them  but   cold,  ha,rd  facts,      in  justice  this  legislation 
should  be   irrmodiately  pas-3od  by  the  Senate. 

©le  bill  pas  JO  d  the  Eouse  L-y  a  unanimous  vote.      The   com- 
pensation features   of   the  bill  have  met  with  almost  universal  ap- 


MT.f 


'  t   < ;, 


i  :i. 


>«; 


(  I 


i.  59  -• 
ppoval  by  disabled  soldiers  throughout  the  country,  Thousands  of 
letters  have  been  "written  to  Congressmen  and  Senators,  voicing  their 
approval.  The  bill  has  met  with  the  enthusiastic  support  of  the 
whole  press  of  the  country. 

Not  only  that,  the  ^erican  Legion  in  convention  as- 
sembled at  Minneapolis,  on  November  10,  11,  and  12,  gave  it  their 
unanimous  endorsement.   (Applause.)  The  Legion  also  suggested  that 
a  number  of  important  amendments  be  added  to  the  bill,  and  es-> 
pecially  one  making  yearly  renewable  term  insurance  payable  in  a 
lump  sum  or  thirty-six  equal  installments,  at  the  option  of  the 
insured*  (Applause.) 

Senator  Smoot  in  his  remarks  tonight  has  stated  that 
he  will  do  all  in  his  power  to  have  the  bill  passed  by  the  Senate 

as  soon  as  possible,  and  I  am  sure  that  the  Senator  means  just 
TX^t  he  says.  (Applause. ) 

The  United  States  Senate  during  the  last  four  months 
has  been  considering  unusual  questions.   Those  of  prims  importance 
have  been  the  peace  treaty,  the  league  of  nations  and  the  rail- 
road bill. 

If  this  bill  were  now  a  law  we  would  not  be  listening 
to  the  statements  and  complaints  from  the  boys  at  Walter  Reed 
Hospital  tonight.  (Great  applause.)  They  would  be  receiving  the 
compensation  to  which  they  are  justly  entitled. 

There  is  nothing  nobler,  nothing  grander  In  this  world, 
than  to  alleviate  suffering.   In  my  judgment  there  would  be  nothing 
nobler,  nothing  grander  for  the  United  States  Senate  to  do,  than  to 
make  the  soldiers  of  the  Republic  a  Christmas  present  by  passing 
this  bill  Immediately.   (Applause.) 

And  when  I  speak  of  Christmas,  it  reminds  me  of  a  story. 


I'';  -^^ib  •• 


i.VA  :  :     .:'l\:.'    n^' :■>?•'• 


\{.?<'}S-'o      ■'')■:    ^'^lu  .;om   a.'»l    ■,;'■:    .f'i:       -      •  v 


:•..':  :v*-"f   vi-r 


.jj  .{:•!■ 


iti".i   ft',. 


;}    •1.-:, 


,cTfie.Tir 


■^^•;nf    •'•' 


r^;-n     .^.!!v 


I  ».  i.  r  ■'  .■-■">(..'; 

.'.:     ;    '•  :   '..:  ^v  '.''•^   ;•    .  'v-  ^"  '     •    •/■  •    ton  r  , 


'.        •) 


■•       \  ■       .       f.-  <-.  i 


^•;jH-r..i»;    v,j-, ;  .{■.    -     .-...I  r  -T 


'^nJ,S.•':v*r     \{    ^r.' 


-  <'; 


a:-f  <::..^;rf 


.•'I"'    .  i  ^    ''jI  ul-rt '  m'- .    i'     .:*  '•'!>:;('.:•>  T-    :•/'•'!:';■.    *    ;< 


-  60  - 
In  a  certain  city  in  one  of  the  Southern  states  people  were  lined 
up  one  morniiig  in  front  of  an  express  office.  It  was  just  before 
Christinas  and  they  were  receiving  the  packages  that  thoughtful 
friends  had  sent  them.  The  v;hite  people  were  waited  on  first,  and 
in  due  time  the  colored  people  received  their  packages.  Among  the 
colored  people  was  an  old  gray-haired  darkey,  and  vflnen  he  received 
his  package  he  placed  it  carefully  and  caressingly  under  his  coat 
and  walked  away,  his  countenance  wreathed  in  Sdilas. '  After  he  had 
walked  along  about  half  a  block  in  some  inexplainable  way  he  dropped 
the  package^  and  the  "bottle  was  broken,  and  the  contents  ran  out 
upon  the  walk.  The  o3d  darkey  stood  still  for  a  moment  as  if  in 
bewilderment.  Then  fully  realizing  what  had  happened,  he  exclaimed 
with  great  earnestness,  "di,  lord,  Christmas  am  came  and  went". 
(Applause). 

I  trust,  gentlemen,  that  the  inaction  of  the  American 
Senate  with  reference  to  this  legislation  will  not  p33ce  the  dis- 
abled soldiers  of  the  Bofablio  in  the  position  of  the  old  darkey, 
so  that  they  can  truthfully  say,  "Gh,  lord,  Christmas  am  come  and 
went . "  ( Applause ) • 

Gentlemen,  during  this  period  of  reconstruction,  let  us 
keep  pace  with  the  march  of  events  and  the  deuands  of  the  hour. 

Let  us  honor  ourselves  by  honoring  thoce  who  horored  the 
nation  and  manl^ind  everjrwhere  in  the  greatest  struggle  of  all  the  ages. 
Gentlemen,  I  tha;.k  you.   (Applause). 


•)  /'I    --J    Si  I  ;  ■•.     i 


'"'■J'    '\ii-     i -II  ./■'•)• 


^5'  •-:-;■; 


v.r 


fi  »./•..,  », 


i-.j 


•r.  ■< 


.([ 


■■-■  ■;! 


■••n    h 


MH,  ?!1LLER:  Coxporal  HocHe,  of  Warrenton,  Virginia,  6n  my 
right,  was  a  farmer  before  he  went  into  the  Aimy.  He  has  a  leg  hei-e  that 
he  cannot  operate  without  a  "brace.  You  see  he  cannot  run  the  plow  Miy 
more,  euad  he  can't  sit  on  his  hay  rack.  He  is  the  last  one  of  the  boys 
from  Walter  Reed  that  we  will  hear  a  talk  from  tonight,  but  he  has  a 
real  story.  (Applause.) 

CORPORAL  HOCKLE:  I  feel  Mnd  ol  out  of  place  here  tonight 
talking  to  so  many  distinguished  personages,  but  the  idea  is  like  that 
bt   the  fellow  down  in  Kentucky  about  the  race  horses.  He  went  down  there 
and  asked  to  see  some  race  horses  and  a  man  took  him  out  and  showed  him 
some  and  said,  "Here  are  some  that  once  were  among  the  finest  horses 
that  ever  were  on  the  track."  Then  the  man   took  him  over  to  another 
stable  and  said  to  him,  *^Here  aro  some  fillies  and  colts  that  have  had 
the  finest  of  ancestors  and  they  are  going  to  develop  into  some  of  the 
great  fillies  and  colts  of  the  future."  And  the  man  who  was  looking 
for  race  horses  said; 

"I  am  not  asking  for  »ha8  been* s  or  *will  be*s,»  I  want  a 
'  right  now,"  * 

That  is  my  point  as  to  the  situaMon  of  the  Army  here  tonight. 
The  boys  have  been  trying  to  impress  upon  you  and  tell  you  the  idea  of 
what  they  want.  What  does  it  mean?  We  have  been  in  the  hospital  for 
quite  a  while,  as  you  will  asstime  from  the  time  of  the  Aimistice,  when 
it  was  signed  until  the  present  time,  unless  they  are  unlucky  like  this 
man  here  who  was  in  the  Army  at  North  Archangel  Expedition.  There  have 
been  numerous  things  suggested  as  remedies  of  all  kinds,  but  the  man  in 
the  Hospital  today  receives  his  army  pay  regardless  of  what  amount  of  in- 
surance he  carries.  Written  into  the  War  Risk  Insurance  Act  is  a  sug- 
gestion offered  to  the  enlisted  men  and  the  oommissionea  officers  of  the 


■7d  /i   c?.rc/l' 


■8  ; 


'■■■'•'      V    V  .<  I. 

Wirt    i'jir-.V'-n'.,    i-,-.,.    *.,.,».    .,i  , 


•■      ■       ■*■■      o   C^x^v   ./^r. 


ion  .1-0 '-.1 


"l/-      :.-  V«.^       ;f..^j     ^ .         YK 


^i{;'^i» 


L. 


r.    ;Jt     ♦ 


:ir-r:    ,: 


.-r 


".f: 


■'  -^''^-'  ^^^'-  ^o  --^^.X^'x.  .,,.  ,, 


'■■''■■■    ■■■■  .•'•;:xr«  i^v-'.o 

■n.^    :n[-:     V:V  :;,-;:"»      y.,.^.;,?     I,    _^p,.     .;;     .     ^^ 


62 

Army  Forces  of  the  cotntry,  as  a  greater  protection.  These  par- 
tially disabled  men  do  not  receive  that  greater  protection^ 
Totally  and  peimanently  disabled  men  are  in  line  to  receive  that. 

The  idea  is  here,  that  if  a  man  is  partially  and  per- 
manently di3a,bled  while  in  the  hospital  he  shculd  receive  the 
benaefit  of  that  amo-unt  of  insurp.nce  according  to  his  percentage 
of  disability,  the  same  as  the  man  that  is  totally  and  permanently 
disabled,  because  while  the  man  is  in  the  hospital  he  is  totally 
disabled,  and  if  his  injury  is  permanent  it  should  entitle  him  to 
this  insurance. 

However,  undoubtedly  the  War  Risk  Act  does  not  read  that 
way,  unfoTxunately,  and  there  is  a  little  word  in  there  that  says 
"permanent '^  that  prevents  these  partially  disabled  men  from  getting 
a  percentage  of  their  insurance  from  the  War  Risk  Insurance  Depart- 
ment. If  they  could  draw  this  insurance  it  would  tide  them  over 
this  oppressing  economic  condition  at  the  present  time.  Many  of 
than  have  families.  Unluckily,  I  have  none.  They  have  to  look 
out  for  their  families.  They  have  those  questions  on  their  minds 
and  they  have  mothers  and  fathers  and  dependents  to  look  out  for, 
I  have  not  either,  because  my  people  are  luclsy  enoiigh  to  be  able 
to  take  care  of  themselves,  they  own  a  little  fana  and  they  get 
along,  but  the  idea  is  that  we  have  many  comrades  in  the  hospital 
that"  took  out  this  insurance,  but  they  do  not  get  this  allowance 


-A^'^-  i-*  ■ 


.A-* 


r  '■  :■  * 


r  I  ;■♦.• 


*  .tr 


r     • 


•n./ 


•'.  ^r^- 


t^r;-v    •••>;.:  ..-c    ,.   . 


^'.-,>. 


vvo-h^'    ,-^--.- 


.*»         ■;■•,.•:;  7  .,'.■ 


-.■      .,;a     ....  •...,.      ,  , 


63 
while  they  are  in  the  hospital,  but  if  they  could  get  that  they  could 
send  it  out  and  it  would  "be  not  spent  or  thrown  away  on  imfertile 
land,  not  at  ftll» 

The  question  tha,t  is  uppermost  in  my  mind  and  has  teen 
since  last  Spring  is  while  I  have  seen  my  "b.iddiea  in  the  hospital 
there,  in  the  condition  that  they  are  and  seeing  the  letters  that 
they  get  from  the  home  folks  urging  them  to  send  more  compensation 
or  more  money  so  that  they  will  be  enabled  to  carry  on  the  ways 
that  they  have  for  obtaining  credit  in  their  home  places,  This  is 
most  disco-oraging, 

I  do  not  know  what  efforts  will  have  been  made  to  al- 
lettiate  the  suffering  of  these  men  that  I  speak  about.  The  totally 
disabled  man  is  receiving  his  check  at  the  present  time,  but  the 
partially  disabled  man  receives  absolutely  nothing  but  his  army 
pay,  which  as  has  been  testified  to  here  is  small  enough. 

There  is  just  one  little  thing  that  I  want  to  say,  and 
that  is  this,  that  if  the  civilian  employes  of  the  United  States 
Government  are  entitled  to  two-thirds  of  the  pay  as  civilian  em- 
ployes  of  the  Goverrjment,  then  the  soldier  when  he  is  disabled 
should  be  entitled  to  two-thirds  of  his  former  pay. 

The  greaw  Commander  of  the  American  Expeditionary  Forces 
says  this  wa»  was  really  v/on  by  the  civilian  soldier.  Now  the 
civilian  soldier  who  won  this  war  was  taken  from  civil  life  and 


•,i\\i  f' 


at,.. 


.:q  V  r-vi^  nwo-;.rf:t  "C 


•. "^j  .n.f  ^,7:^  >:• /f-" 


-'      .•?:.--..' 


•r  x: 


;;. '^   v-r 


r.   ■'-( 


V- ;-  •* 


_!'•(■ 


-I.'   0'    .5b'  v  .~:3-'i1f   r^v-^ii  Ilriv  ;;..--:    'll;.    j-r/lw  worTi'    -^ 

\: .  U-.   'ixr{  vi/o    ■..;:.•  '  .?/••  i4Xu»/ui.^^:<  j       •■•■.• /:c-M--:i   n'":rr  sznh:.:'.'b   \i.L 

:j:J,-j3   .:•'.;.(■;,;    .:••'    ■;:>  ^i^vi.rl.-iia?   i-in- j:.r.i.:    ■..,:-^    H    ,;.;.'' t    .-riff"    ;■  ■ 
•■;y-.    .ri.txi.  vrs    :..:    7.;.;  -.lii-   lo   ^.  I  ix^^ J  ■■<•"■;?   c/  ir  lJi-*iTe-  :>\.-.   ^fn;;;/. 


■«■.  ^.'-f  f 


€4 
Piacea  in  ^Utar,  l,,e,  „M.h  necessitate,  a'  g.^,  ,^^       3. 
he  Ms  ..„e  .^.  to  .Ms  co.^>..,  ,,,  ,,,,,,  ,^^  ^,^^^  .^.,Jr 
and  his  coMxa^e  who  did  net  t/ufrer  in,-,,-^  _.,.  .,„^,    . 

occw'-ng  positions,    good  ponition.,   ^ut  of  co-a-so  i-,  th 

•"-  i'l  the  majority 
of  cae^e  that  depe-ids  on  the  individtal.     In  the  „,=  •      •. 

■^^-      m  the  majority  of  oaeea 

these  disatled  .en  would  net  want  any  considaratio.  ..  ,x,  ,,.^ 
you  if  they  had  been  discharged  ,trai£j,t  without  a  S.C.D.  .ttZh«4 

onth«n.     When  you  get  a  S.C.D.  man  It  means  this:     That  no  »>_ 
Ployer  of  a  private  concen,  can  faithfvaly  take  you  and  consider 
you  in  his  business  or  in  his  work  the  same  as  a  man  that  is  not 
disabled. 

Since  the  Federal  Ez5>loye»  a  Act  of  September  7,   loig, 
two-thirds  of  the  fo«,er  Ul.ry  of  ci.iU..  c^.oyos  of   Le  United 
States  has  been  paid,   and  I  want   to  ask  you,   and  we  .bin:.  It  u 
only  fair  and  Just   thirt  we  should  ask  it,    that  the  aervxce  n.en 
should  at  least  receire  compensation  for  disability  .-  l«s.x-.._ 
eqiml   to   that,    of   two-thirds  of  fairs   e^lar^y    bof^r.  H«^   entered   the 
amy,    or  navy,   or  whatever  branch  it  was. 

Gentlemen,   I  think  that  is  all  I  have  to   say.     It  la- 
the point  of  my  argument.     I  have  very  little  to   say,   and  I  have 
gotten  that  out  of  my  system.     I   thank  you. 

MR.  MILLER:     Sergeant  Matthe-.TS  has  one  point  he  wants 
to  bring  out. 

SERGEANT  MATTHEWS:     Gentlanen,    I  did  not  intend  to  do 


65 

this,  fe-vit  after  I   foimd  out  that  it  had  not  "been  hro-aght  out  hy 
the  men  -up  until  this  time  I  thought  I   should  do   so.     This  is  in 
regard  to  the  examination  that  is  given  you  by  the  Insurance 
Board.     Now>   there  is  one  man  at  Walter  Heed  Hospital  who  rates 

a  man*  s  disability  so  far  as  insur-nce  is  concerned,   and  he  rates 
it  from  a  table.     A  man  with  an  ankle,    stiff  anKLe,   it  makes  no 
difference  in  regard  to  his  stature,   or  his  build,  he  is  given  a 
standard  rate.     Now,    it  stands  to   reason  that  a  light  man,   a 
little  nffln,  would  not  be  disabled  so  much  as  a  man  who  was  heavier, 
Is  not   that  clear? 

What  I  wanted  to  eay  was  this.     Why  can't  they  have  a 
Board  examine  those  men?     I  know  this  from  a  personal   standpoint. 
I  went  down  myself  to  be  examined.     I  lacked  twelve  and  one-half 
per  cent  from  being  a  dead  man.     In  other  words,    I  am  eighty- 
seven  and  one-half  per  cent  disabled.     If  I  had  twelve  and  one- 
half  per  cent  more  disability,   I  would  be  a  totally  disabled  man, 
dead. 

Now,   I  am  not  dead  by  a  long  si^t,   I  will  admit.     I 
do  not  think  it  is  fair  that  one  man  be  allc^ved  to  do  this.     I 
went  down  there  and  went  before  what  they  called  the  board.     This 
board  was  three  men,   three  civilian  doctors  who  never  examin3d  any 
of  my  injuries  at  all.     They  took  it  under  the  consideration  of 
but  one  man  today,   and  I  feel  that  men  ought  to  be  allowed  to  be 


;.  d     :.' 


«  ■« 


rr 


X'-^ 
*, 


ejcamined  "by  more  than  one  p«rt  and  no  table  to  "be  "used,  "because 
I  ]mow  that  there  are  no  two  wouids  that  have  been  received  in 
this  war  that  are  exactly  alike.  There  are  absolutely  no  two 
worinds  exactly  alike.  Wounds  may  affect  a  man  differently.  Now, 
in  the  hospital  you  will  find  men  that  the  mere  shock  of  losing 
an  aim  has  affected  mentally.  Now,  what  consideration  is  given 
to  that?  A  man  may  not  be  a  "nut , "  may  not  be  crazy  enough  for 
that,  but  hi«  mental  disposition  may  be  lowered  to  a  certain  ex- 
tent, and  I  feel  that  a  man  like  that  ought  to  be  taken  into 
consideration. 

Now, they  told  me  further,  for  exaniple,  if  a  man  was 
a  professional  mechanic  in  life  and  lost  a  cot5)le  of  fingers, 
that  did  not  make  any  difference  in  regard  to  his  disability. 
Now^  if  he  was  an  expert   tea^-taster,  if  his  palate  was  injiired, 
that  did  not  make  any  difference  in  his  disability. 

Now,  owing  to  the  extremes  of  this  vocational  ed- 
ucation- I  Em    getting  off  the  point,  but  coming  back  to  this 
vocational  edtication  —  a  man  that  was  brought  up  there  this 
momifcg,  thirty- three  years  old,  -  how  about  the  younger  chaps?  — 
the  younger  fellows  in  the  army?  There  is  a  clause  in  this 
Vocational  Education  which  says  four  years  is  the  limit  of  time. 
How  about  those  fellows  that  came  out  of  High  School  tmder  age 
and  lied  to  get  into  the  service?  I  am- one  of  them.  I  will 
admit  that  I  was  a  liar  onee  In  my  life.  I  lied  to  get  into 
service.  When  I  was  sixteen  years  old  I  enlisted,  I  am  eighteen 


•J':) 


■.-:■■  ■■      .   ■••--i.    .  „--i4    err        ■;"..   n:^  :  ■  t       •  -'      .  '>•  • 

■■.:-.■-■.■.  .;'  ■  '.^'  ^>^T,    Oit  '■^\       •  "3  .  .*■"•■- 


•;•  ,>il 


:,C  'li 


. '».•'?, 


cj:.f    ^1  .  -:  =-.>-^ 


> •  '  ■         .    .•-  ,      .  *  ^     ,     .    , .  ..1  ,    ■    ,,   .1.        ,  _     ..    ^  •  ^  . 


67 

years  old  today.     I  have  been  out  of  sohool  two  years.     What  college 
Can  I  enter  without  a  year*  s  preparation?     What  college  will  tatoe 
me  without  a  year's  preparation  and  put  me  through?     Now,  .to  get  a 
college  education,    with  a  year*  s  propa.ration  would  take  five  years. 
The  clause  says  you  have  only  four  years  to  do  it   in.     "Wha-t  can  we 
do?     That  is  from  one  extreme  to  the  other.     There  is  a  man  thirty- 
three  years  old  that  Qan't  change,   but  the  yo"unger  men  are  too  young 
to  do  it.     Something  ought  to  be  done  there.     That  is  all.     I  thank 
yotu 

MR.  MILLER:     Gentlonaen,    the  word  Centralia  is  a  shrine  in 
the  American  Legion  memory.     The  Johnson  family  supplied  two  flight- 
ing Congressmen  from  the  chamber  abo«e.     We  want  to  hear  a  very 
brief  statement  from  Congressman  Johnson  of  Washington,   an  American 
Legion  member  and  a  service  man. 

HONORABLE  ALBERT  JOHNSON  (WASHINGTON)  !     Mr.   Chairman, 
Senators,  my  Colleagues,  Members  of  the  Americ£.n  Legion: 

I  can  only  take  one  minute.     I  have  been  profoundly  im- 
pressed here  tonight,     I  know  that  you  all  real5.5se  as  we  do  in 
the  House  of  Representatives,  that  each  one  of  you  can't  do  all 
of  the  work.     EachEsniJi^ir  finds  a  committee  and  gets  along  to  the 
best  of  his  ability  on  that  committee.     It  has  been  my  pleasure 
to  follow  my  colleague,   Mr.  Sweet,     It  has  been  my  pleasure  to 
follow  my  colleague,  Mr.  McEadden,    on  nitrate  matters  and  the 
like  of  that.     But  I  have  only  one  purpose  in  Congress,    to 
get  the  dirty,   red,    slimy  snakes,    out  of  the  Ifeiited  States. 


u 


o; 


'■) 


"<v     rt 


1      ..    .•      ,^; 


•A    -■:.  ■    ' 


: '  ,'>^^•:      ■.■•)■'■,:  .  .-r  :       ::' 

.•■;  .     ■  .:.  ■     •:.'    yl  *?::    •  sir.-      .'. 


.    , 


.ir:<-    ;  •-;   *      :u. 


■,-v         '         '•        ,-1 


'  i 


r     v"ri:j.;^ 


68 

And  it  ia  vH.tb  a  great  deal   of  pleasure  that   I   say  to 
all  of  yotu   that  there  went  on  the  calendar  in  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives today  a  hill  to  make   sure  th?t  these  deportations 
that  we  have  intended  to  take  place   shall  take  place,   and  right 

away.      {Great  applause,) 

Tou  see,    each  one  of  us  in  Congx-iss  has  got  something 
to  push.     This  District  which  1  have  the  honor  to  a^epre3ent  has 
teen  a  hothed  of  red  revolution  for  ten  years.     1  have  been 
through  it,    every  phase.     TShen  my  people  honored  me  with  election 
to  Congress,   they  Imew  that  I  would  get  on  the  Immigration  Com- 
mittee.    I  state  that  we  have  had  in  my  time,   seven  years,   two 
Mils  that  we  thought  would  work.     And  then,   just  to  cap  the 
climajs  on  Armistice  Day,   in  the  Very  center  of  my  District,   this 
assassination  toCk  places 

Ifeiese  soldiers,   a  company  of  100,  marching  in  a  joyful 
celebration  were  shot  down  in  this  way:     The  I.  W.  W's^   these 

traitorous  revoltltionists,   that  have  been  gnawing  at  the  foun- 
dation of  this  Government  and  are  now  doing  it  so  boldly,   planted 
some  of  their  men  in  theif  hall,   planted  others  with  rifles  on 
the  hill  nearby.     "Riose  in  the  hall  were  to  fire  when  they  heard 

A.4hot  fired.     Those  on  the  hill  were  to  fire  when  they  heard  a 

shot   fired.     These   scoundrels  in  the  hall  fired  at  close  range 
a  cot^le  of  shots  and  then  ran,    and  with  a  back  signal  the 
men  on  the  hill^  with  long  range  rifles,   fired,   and  those  men, 
jast  back  from  Russia  like  that  lad,   fought,  having  served  on 


^3> 


0,1    V-v     r      .         „ 

-      •     ■»  ■  ■* 


.no-.;: 


w'     •-  ■  '\-. 


••  -    ? 


'    ■'    ■   •      IV 


•  ''j*    :?-t  X'^x!. 


r     i;r 


,T0 


V-T' 


'*'s"''^0         '  •" 


j*"* 


■^:.T7 


'  *  ■'  •*•  >  ■  ..'1  ..r 


;o  -•?■•, 


^^-   '^  ^^n^t   ,^..:^j  .n; 


^'-"'  t^'.^^it..ia 


Ir.'^ 


t  ■ -o  if  or 


S  :i' 


<r-  'd' 


■  •*»..>,  i^i  J    ■•  ->   ». 


^■'•»■ 


:-'v^o 


*ii-  I 


•.l 


■-i:'?    /IS- 


s.:.-l 


^.:::,'\  C  :     T., 


*■> 


•  *■-*'■   'p        ■■■■   -t  , 


■■'^•"      JvO.it, 


"rr. 


--•3'      :?i:i;;t  v^,j^^  ^^^^^^ 


*^'  "".'/i;  v.'.-/" 


,IX/rf 


-  ^  X'-r-'^ 


'  «'r;;t   ;;•  ■- 


.'■■^/   r-l.?   ,.:tx  ,,i.(jr:^  ....  .j.,  -  .    .    .      . 

•■^*     ;C',-r»    .^\/^; 


69 

both  fronts.  They  returned  to  thi«^  their  own  Tfeited  Stateo,  and 
were  shot  down  with  that  -unifoim  on.  And  one  lad  was  killed,  hie 
insurance  had  lapsed  owing  to  failure  to  get  to  the  postof fice,  as 
a  result  of  the  Russian  Goverranent, 

Now,  to  show  you  what  kind  of  men  we  have  got  in  that 
district,  the  Reds  will  claim  and  their  defense  will  be  that  our 
Legion  "boys  started  to  rush  their  homes  to  mob  them.  That  is  not 
60.  The  start  was  made  when  the  pistol  shot  was  fired,  and  it 
might  have  been  pretty  quick;  but  when  the  Mayor  of  the  City  rushed 
in  and  called  \qpon   those  Legion  boys  to  save  that  jail  with  twenty 
men  that  they  had  arrested,  save  those  men  in  the  jail,  the  very 
Legion  soldier  whose  four  brothers  who  had  been  shot  to  death  got 
in  front  of  that  jail  and  st6od  off  the  mob.  That  is  American! ^. 
(Applause.) 

One  fellow,  the  fellow  who  ran  with  the  pistol  that  fired 
these  shots,  was  on  the  road  trying  to  get  cuii  ox  tc'^n,  and  turned 
and  shot  a  man,  and  was  lynched.  Now,  over  in  "^ew  York  there  lies 
tonight,  shivering  and  shaking  in  the  wfng  of  the  5"^:Ms  Island 
building  there,  a  dirty,  cowering,  cowardly  skcmk,  nruned  Berkman, 
about  to  be  deported  to  Russia,  and  I  hope  the  cold  part  of  Russia. 
The. coward  ciinges  and  cries.  Why?  Because  he  is  afraid  of  death. 
Think  of  itl  An  anarchist,  the  man  that  plur.ged  a  kriiZe   into  the 
back  of  Henry  C.  Prick,  the  man  who  has  planted  coTaho,  the  man  who  has 
written  the  most  damnable  literature  preaching  assassination, 


-'  f  --        .;•! 


;„    O'. 


:    .'7  ■•    t' 


).  :; 


,<fo.-. 


(.:-;i. 


•:t   ■•)j: 


'. .    V.'v)     ■«■ 


:'i  X'i--' 


70, 

death  by  bomb,  killing  people  himself,    afraid  to  die!     And  that  is 
the  kind  of  dastardly  trash   they  are,  and  they  shall  not  siarvive  in 
otir  Ifeiited  States.      (Great  applause. ) 

MR.  MILLIK:      You  have  heard  from  the  leaders  of  the 
Senate.     I    say  leaders,  because  no  one  man  leads  the  Senate.     It 
is  therefore  only  fitting  that  we  should  close  tonight  by  hearing 
from  the  leader,  I  mean  from  the  majority  leader  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  Mr.  Mondell,   of  Wyoming. 

HOKDRABLE  FRANK  ^,  MOFDELL:     Mr.  Chairman,   Mr.  Miller, 
Mr.   Commander  and  Members  of  the  American  Legion,   and  you  gallant 
young  gentlemen  who  bear  the  honorable   scars  of  war: 

I   am  delighted  to  be  here  toni^t,     I  want   to    thank  you  *•- 
I  mean  somebody-for  an  unusually  good  dinner.     Did  you  do  it. 
Brother  Jones? 

DIRECTOR  CHOLMELEY- JONES:  No,  sir,  I  did  not. 

MR,  MO^■rDELL:  I  have  been  delighted  with  all  the  speeches, 
and  I  am  not  going  to  make  one  myself.  I  was  thrilled  by  the 
oratory  of  my  late  candidate  for  the  Presidency,  the  gentleman 
from  Indiana,  the  Senator  fr6m  Indiana,  Mr.  Watson,   (Applause. 
Laughter,)  But  he  put  me  in  bad  by  refusing  to  be  a  candidate. 
A  constituent  from  home  dropped  in  a  few  days  ago  and  wanted  to  talk 
on  Presidential  canidacies.  Well,  I  mentioned  the  names  of  a  few 
gentlemen  who  looked  good  to  me.  The  next  morning  he  called  me 
up  and  he  said:   "Jou  are  not  so  much  on  giving  tips  on  candidates. 
The  fellow  you  named  first  and  most  favorably  is  out  of  the  game." 
Perhaps  it  is  only  temporary. 


■^-"l"*! 


X   .V  - 


c^ilntrr^'      T.r:i'-  l-ir 


L.-vl 


i  ■    i 


I.     , 


n;  ■*.         -^    ;:1 


'.1   -r* 


.J   = 


b-^o  ■    ".'Xifrfc^c/v;    \f    111- 


>i 


•.     T  T. 


..    •:^    L-iii 


:>     •   I'v'* 


■     I 


:s:>i-i :. 


; :  J  -'  t:.'    J 


"J  -t 


71. 

SENATOR  r/TSON:     Oh,   no. 

MR,  MO^iDSXt:      Well,    that's  too  baxi,  but  there  are  plenty 
left,   even  at  that,      I   enjoyed,   as  I  always  enjoy,  hearing  from 
Ibcle  Joe.     I  am  delisted  to  know  that  our  good  friend,  the  Senator 
from  Utah,  does  not  propose   to  do  a  thing  to   the  War  Eisk  Bureau, 
but  dismember  it,     I   am  sure  that  whatever  happens  to   that  great  or- 
ganization,   the  gentleman  who  at  present  presides  over  it,  will  be 
found  doing  his  duty  and  doing  it  ably  and  well,  vdierever  he  may  be 
Callad  to   service,      (Apjlause,) 

We  have  all  had  some  experience  with  that  War  Risk  Bureau. 
We  have  all  visited  it  frequently,   corresponded  with  it  regularly, 
have  consulted  its  efficiency  frequently,   and  cussed  it  at  least 
part  of   the  time,      (Laughter.) 

I    think  the  Bureau  is  getting  better.     In  fact,  I  know 
it   is,     God  knows  there  has  been  an  opportunity  for  Improvement, 
I  am  sorry  that  we  have  not  gotten  on  well  with  our  vo- 
cational-trainings    Surely  Congress  has  been  generous.     Congress 
has  meant  well.      Congress  has  done  everything  that  anybody  sug- 
gested should  be  done  and  I  have  not  only  been  surprised  but 
grieved  to  know  that   that  organization  with  all  of  its  opportunity 
has  functioned  so  poorly, 

I  have  been  interested  in  the  oratory  of  the     evening 
from  these  gentlemen  who  are  accomplished  orators,  but  I  have 
been  very  deeply  touched  and  affected  by  the  simple  stories  of 
the  men  from  Walter  Reed  Hospital, 


,i;'^'2ix.-I    :l>'.xil  *:  ..-^  -^/b    o:*   :i::i.i1   s.    :\':   --^i   '-r:  .-■lo"-.    *  >:<    -'rib   ^i'li-S-J  CiOi'i 

I  ,oc;.'-*i..:i;V)      .-.•zx'-M^v    o-^    ii.  tif^'O 

-.  '     V     ,iO;\:    ;■  I         ,7.-.  +-:.  J    •s.T.f-l  :«   '>^    £;•    ^f '^i^l.C^-      'Jr     -^  1 .     /      * 

••»y/  tjyo  rTtl'r  Xi  »;.   -\o  .-^r  •?:♦ -i^  :»c/t  f>v;- '     v^  ■■'■li:^   •^tic-:   nir-    T 

ij'j/i   5^.' i'/ijT'-ji;    ri..jr^,}    ^^Ctto  .tort  r2v,=:;i    t  b.fn  -^-.TOf:   :5ii  dXc-vJIj:    :  •  .1'^?.-^'^ 
■IrfTi'vi/T.-*     cat   '^.^  -v;i.-J-'-iD  on.t  ni  foeic:"  •^.'.■i.ti:    '. •••?;:   evr>'   ^ 


12. 

It  certainly  seams  we  have  failed  in  oiir  duty  in  certain 
regards.     Brother  Johnson  just  called  attention  to   the  fact  that  we 
each  and  ail  of  us  have  our  particular  jots,   our  particular  lines  of 
work.     My  particular  line  is   to  do  whatever  all  of  the  other  members 
conclude  ought   to  bo  done,    to  help  ttiem  accomplish   those  things 
which   they    think  ought  to  be  acccmplished. 

I  am  sure  tnat  while  there  are  many^  men  in  Congress  who 
have  given  careful  attention  to   this  matter  of  compensation  and  care 
of  the  woi'^jfidod  men  of  the  service,  we  certainly  have  failed  griev- 
ously of  d'.'ii.'g  justice   in  certain  classes  of  cases,   as  indicated  by 
the  statement  £  that  have  been  made  here  tonight* 

I  hope  we  may  be  able  to  remedy   -those  faults  and  short- 
comings,    I   cc?.l?,borated  wJlliiO^  good  friend  Sweet  and  his  colleagues 
in  connection  '.viirh   the  bill   that   they  drafted,  and  did  'Ahat  I   could 
to  help   them  get   the  bill   through  the  House  in  the  Fall,     We  have  all 
regretted,   of  cor.rse,    that    ohe  'rerjjte  has  not  been  able,   owing  to   the 
press  of  other  business,    to  bimig  that  measure  up,  but  we  have  never, 
any  of  us,   at  ar-iy   tiire  imagine-i  lo.at  thsre  was  any  possibility  of  the 
failure  of  the  legislation.     There  has   s:.mply  beer,  an  unfort\anate 
situation  that  has  prevented  the  moa^xxe  from  being   taken  up,  up   to 
this   time,      I  hope   th.'=»t   it  v/Hl  be  passed  in  t:he  Senate  very  soon, 
I   repeat  I  hope  very  much  that  befcro  we  ad.jo-'j-.Ti  for  the  Christmas 
holid^,ys,   Brother  Gweet,    that  the  bill  may  be  agreed  to   in  both 
Houses,      ()Applav.se. ) 


el 


r-^  ■■     ..    •  7-c:i  .-V     '  ; 
■   i        -.    ■  -■♦  t  '  ;  •(  t  ■     .   ..  - 


73. 

It  is  a  pleasure   to  meet  you  splendid  yoiang  gentlemen, 
to  look  you  ih   the  eye,    to  confer  with  you,    to   talk  over  with  you 
those  things  you  have  in  your  mind.     You  come  from  every  part  of 
our  great  land.     You  have  proven  your  worth  on  many  fields 
the  world  around.     The  future  is  in  your  hands, 

I    still   thirk  I   am  a  young  man,   almost  as  yoiang  as 
Uncle  Joe,  "but  I  realize   that  those  of  us  who  have  been  on  the 
field  of  action  for  a  long  time  will  before  long  give  way  to  you 
young,   vigorous,  hearty,    capable,   dependable,  patriotic  young  men, 
of   the  men  of  the  American  Legion.     You  are  needed  at  home  today, 
just  as  badly  as  you  ever  were  needed  on  the  battle  line  of   the 
Western  Front,   for  there  are  a  lot  of  folk  in   this  country  at   this 
time  who  are  not  thinking  very  straight,   and  folk   that  need  the 
Ijaflueace  of  well-intentioned  right-thinking  men.     That  is  the 
field  in  which  you  are  going  to   exert  your  helpful   influence,  and 
in  the  days   to  come  you  will  do  yourselves  credit  in  the  pursuits 
of  peace  and  in  the  maintenance  of  true  Americanism  at  home,  as 
you  reflected  glory  on  your  country  in  the  battlefields  beyond 
the   sea. 

I   thank  you,      (Applause.) 

MR.  MILLER:     Gentlemen^  a  matter  of  business  has  come 
■qp  since  I  enno-unced  that  Mr.  Mondell  would  be  the  last   speaker. 
It  is  so  pressing  that  a  number  of   the  State  Commanders  have  called 
me  aside  and  asked  that  Mr.  McGuire  be  heard  for  a  moment  to  ex- 
press the  ideas  as  held  by  them. 

MR.  MCGUIRE     (NEBRASKA)      (APPLAUSE.) 


...  ¥• 

MR.  T,  J*  MCGUIBE:     Mr.   Cooanander  and  Gentlemen  of 
both  Houses  cf  Congress: 

We  are  particularly  directed  to   listen  to  the  expressions 
from  the  eminent  and  cistingiiisted  senate t*  fi-om  Utah  along  the  lines 
of   the  bill  as  proposed  by  the  Aiiieri'^.an  v.e^ion  for  the  benefit  of 
disabled  men.     I   listened  with  very  grea'''  cc.re  to    so/ne  of  the  other 
Cornnanders  also,  anLi  they   seem  to- feel  that  perhaps  Senator  Stooof^s 
expression  has  not  q.-ai  be  met  the  point  as  laid  down  in  o"ur  resolutions. 

We  ha^^e  one  concrete  case,  a  man  with  one  leg.     He   says 
that  in  order   to  benefit  under  the  present  Ioawc  he  must  hobble  aroiind 
on  that  one  leg  to   tlx^ee  different  biireaus  in  order   to  funft.lon  J)ro«— 
perly.  .  Uiat  was  one  case.     There  were  others.     Not,   acting  on  those 
things  and  after  a  careful   study,  we  decided  to  recommend  to  your 
honorable  body  the  need  of  coordinating  these  Btireaus  -onder  one  head, 

I  hold  no  brief  for   the  War  Iiisk  Insiirance.     I   am  a  member 
of  Senator   Smooths  political  faith,    therefore  I  have  no  partisan 
spirit. 

I   cannot    see  what  benefit   is  going  to   corns   to   the  dis- 
abled men   in  the  plan  indicated  by  Senator  Smoct  as  a  possibility  or 
a  probability;    that  is   to   say,  where  a  man  in  order  to  function,   as 
our  wounded  buddy  says,  will  have  to  go  from  the  Pension  Bureau  to 
the  War  and  Navy  Departments  and  from  there   to   the  Post  Office  De- 
partment, 

Our  Legion  resolution  says   these  things  ought  to  be  co- 


?6» 
ordinated  vunder  one  "branch.     Now,  I  -under stood  today  from  a  visit  to 
some  of  OTir  Congressmen  that   some  of   them  have  some  personal  griev- 
ances against  the  War  Risk  Bureau,     We  have  grievances,   too,   those 
of  us  who  were  in  the  service,  but  we  looked  upon  the  grievances 
d\iring  the  war  as  something  that  was  incidental  to  war.     You  questioned 
the  n\imber  of  employes*     Have  you  thoaight,  Senat:>r,    that  the  present 
number  of  employes  is  not  only  taking  caxe  of  the  business  that  has 
accrued  and  that  is  on  the  docket,    sc  to   speak,    to  bd  taken  care  of 
presently,  but  also   the  business,    that  accrued  during  the  war,  of 
nearly  five  million  men?     Those  Are  pertinent  facts. 

Now,   then,  when  you  say  this  Bureau  is  improving  and  is 
doing  better,   it  suggests  itself  to  our  minds  that  it  would  be  better 
for  you  gentlemen  to  use  your  power  and  strength   to   support  this  and 
develop  it  and  increase  its  efficiency,  rather  than  to   spread  it  to 
the  four  winds  and  divide  it  up  into  three  or  four  bureaus.     That  is 
our  thought.     Fe  are  not  Bolsheviks.     We  look  to  you  as  our  repre- 
sentatives*    We  don*t  come  and  demand  attention  as  some  others  have 
come  to   this  body.     We  come  to  you  and  put  our  case  before  you  after 
we  have  studied  it;   and  at  least  with  all  due  respect  to   the  Senator 
from  Utah,  we  have  studied  it  as  carefully  as  he  has  and  perhaps  more 
carefully  from  the  standpoint  of  our  buddies  who   sit  around  here  with- 
out limbs  and  without  features,  and  with  other  marks  of  disability 
upon  them. 

So    therefore,  let  us  say  to  you,    sir,    that  our  Legion 
resolution  commends  Itself  to  your  attention,   that  we  believe  that 
this  Far  Risk  Bureau  —  call  it  what  you  may,   but  whatever  Bureau 


.:ii;-e7d  t":   %'S'^^'^' 


T''^''$    "iC  1^?-'^    "jioD    li'" 


■r  -.  t»/.. 


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S-- 


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1.  ' 


•:  7 


;■,■  J.      V     •■    -='■:'•■■  i'  '■■■■" 


J  L-    :  •  i;;''i'i  c   ^^^ 


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:.'*} 


.-.,   4..  ...    .  f    ■  f^.'.    --    tr>    ■'Uf^' 


'rx 


76. 
it  is  or  whatever  organization  it  is  —  all  these  functions  should 
"be  coordinated  xinder  one  head,  and  that  the  breaking  vp  of  this 
Stureau  and  separating  the  work  and  giving  part  of  it  to  the  Pension 
Bureau,  part  to  the  War  and  Navy  Departments  and  part  to  the  Post 
.Office  Department  —  which  certainly  cannot  be  held  15)  as  a  mark  of 
efficiency  today  —  will  not  tend  to  icake  these  disahled  men  any 
happier  in  their  lot#   (Applause*) 

HONOMBLE  REED  SMOOT:  Just  one  momeht^  please-  It 
wou^d  be  altogether  too  long  for  me  to  even  start  to  teiko  the  time 
to  reply,  but  I  want  to  say  to  Mr,  McGuire  that  I  think  that  I  have 
given  ss  much  attention  to  this  sUhjoct  as  any  man,  and  if  I  can 
not  convince  any  man  v^ho  has,  first,  the  interest  of  the  Government, 
next  the  interest  of  the  soldier  at  heart,  that  the  proposition  that 
I  suggest  herp  is  better  than  the  situation  as  it  exists  today,  I  do 
not  want  him  to  sijgpport  it,  and  I  shall  cay  so  on  the  floor  of  the  Senate 
if  it  ever  comes  up.  But  as  I  stated  here  tonight  I  have  not  time  to  go 
into  the  detail  of  this  matter,  ao  I  will  ask  to  "be  excused  and  I  am  going 
to  ask  the  soldiers  to  withhold  their  judgment  until  the  whole  case  is 
presented, 

God  knows  I  do  not  want  to  do  anything  that  is  to  your  dis- 
advantage, and  if  there  is  any  better  way  to  correct  the  evils  that 
we  all  know  exist,  I  am  for  that  way,  I  received  a  letter  the  other  day 
from  a  young  man  in  my  State,  and  this  Bureau  has  been  trying  to  make 
him  dead  for  six  months,  and  he  wonH  be  dead,  and  his  wife  won't  allow 
him  to  say  that  he  is  dead*  iThere  are  so  many  things,  so  far  as  the 


^.fk 


^'^'^SSSZil.: 


':/^ 


■t^. 


.V-    :   r    *...:.    -.. 


J  .M 


.-a..i.  1., 


rj 


• :  .<•••   —  •     .  .>■ 


i{.f' 


•.(:♦.    r    .u   *i  ■  A    ■■T-,.i 


<i  .<■-»        ,-•         ■ .     S-   }    ,      ^  .i  ■.  -       ■...■ 


c\. 


It. 


trr-y 


^ 


'.f  •.  '■     n 


f/    ft     1 


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:;H    *0: 


r.l    't/,- 


rx 


*ii 


-■'■'*     V; 


t*. 


..,.••••<,:■   I  J-    ,.rt   .'..It 


77. 

d\g)l^lcation  of  work  is  concerned,  that  I  would  li^©  to  talk  to  you 
about,  but  I  can  not  say  to  you  all  that  I  would  like*  On©  thing 
I  will  say  is  that  one  of  the  greatest  evils  in  this  Government  today 
is  the  duplication  of  woyk. 

MS,  MCGUIEEi  I  agree  with  that,  sir. 

SENATOR  SMOOT'  We  are  spending  not  a  hundred  million, 
but  hundreds  of  millions  of  dollars  in  duplication  of  work,  T^'lk 
about  the  Health  Department  of  this  Government  I  Do  you  know  that 
there  are  f  orty-'Six  agencies  doing  exactly  the  same  work?  No,  of 
course  you  don't* 

MR*  MCGUIEE:  We  have  asked  that  that  be  brought  under 
one  head,  Senator. 

SENATOR  SMOOT:  Tes,  but  additional  divisions  will  be  created 
that  will  bring  about  exactly  the  same  thing.   I  etm  in  a  position 
to  know  what  they  are  trying  to  do  in  the  other  Departments,  and  I 
am  trying  to  make  a  transfer  that  will  not  only  be  of  advantage  to 
the  Government,  but  preferable  for  everybody  interested* 

I  want  to  say  just  one  word  as  to  what  was  said  here 
tonight  in  relation  to  the  non-action  of  the  Senate  etfter  the 
thirteenth  day  of  September,  the  day  the  House  acted  on  the  Sweet 
Bill,  and  why  it  has  not  been  acted  upon  by  the  Senate.  I  am 
going  to  ask  the  soldiers  here,  whenever  they  hear  a  complaint 
made  of  the  Senate  that  it  did  not  act  earlier  upon  the  Sweet  Bill, 


i}i.     ."'T/.V 


..  i  ;:■.  '■,} 


.:^-a:-':  "■     .V  M  -;. ;  r^v.       -^^    ^i 
■J'.i   ?      .-^xr^r  \o  a,i£.~}  ■rjti-  .,'■    -.^   .'nrSl:.:.;  '..o   ■;;-,cr.U.;:    ':.o   r.i:. ■■:{.: i'.r.\   ^.j:: 

'i->.ji^ij  ;i  :  ..u'l:    ■■■-■■■    .:■■{*■  :.    '/f    '.^rk^M  ,>r..:/.i  •;:>■■■      r'f. 'TTJ/^O*^  .=?' 

X   .;::r.    ,c  J:r-u;^':;. .  .':«■   'tv.-^j'.     v;;?    ;;x:     :  -    : :!      .lix^it    ,■■?;■    ^;;vr'.t   IC'V'     ■■^"rS    /t 
;..;    r;..-.J:i.-;«?.,..-,   •.  •     .'    .;:- ;    >  ;..  .CXxv/  c'.^J    ■:f:;:i;i  .:^^-r.>    -^    /.-.    .    v;^   :•  t'.  ...^^    ■-.. 


78. 

to  call  thQ .attention  of  the  nan  vt.o  makes  the  complaint  to  the  fact 
that  from  the  thirteenth  day  of  i3op\;ember  to  the  very  day  that  they 
voted  upon  the  League  of  Nat; tors  the  I'lnlted  States  Senate  was  worl&- 
ing  with  all  its  power  to  save  oui-  piesbnb  form  of  Governmani ,  to 
preserve  iimerica's  independence  and  sovereignty.  Just  tell  msm   thati 
Gentlemen,  Senator  Watson  will  close  the  mee>:iing. 
SENATOR  WATSON:  B/Ir#  Cha3rcir.n  and  Gent  lemon:  I  know 
that  we  all  feel  that  it  has  been  good  for  us  to  be  here*  Our 
hgarts  have  been  touched,  our  pat.ric':ism  has  been  aroused,  our  sense 
of  justice  has  been  stirred  by  thone  very   simple,  direct,  statements 
from  the  Bo^sp  of  Walter  Reed  Hospital. 

Wo  all  jaaow  that  the  nystr  Risk  Insurance  was  created  hastily, 
that  it  was  organized  under  extreme  cond.it  ior^/?,  the.t  there  were  many 
inequities  and  many  ineq.'ualities,  and  th^.t  after  awhile  under  some 
system  it  ie  all  going  to  be  straight fc»nod  out,  and  the  jrough  places 
will  be  made  smooth,  and  the  crooked  places  vd^l  be  straight.   I  feel 
soire  that  you  will  l^ave  no  reason  to  complain  of  the  inattention  of 
the  Axaerican  Congress,  just  ao  soon  as  we  can  arrange  for  proper  leg- 
islatio^u  Of  course,  nobody,  as  X^cle  Jo  a  has  said,  will  alv;E.;:''s  be 
satisfied  with  legislation,  because  we  are  so  many  mlilions  that  are 
directly  interested,  and  it  is  iiqpossible  to  leg:5,slate  for  the  case 
of  each  individual  concerned.  But  on  the  whole  this  legislation 
will  be  satisfactory  to  you  because  w©  txioiy  tLat  we  are  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  people,  the  servants  of  the  men  who  have  fought 
this  war  and  won  it» 


r.;Y.y 


tfi^rif- 


•i-i.-.  ,''. 


,  •.  ri     ■•  I  •  • 


:>^i:/r 


■I- 
f- 


a"« 


o>i 


■  •     '.'L  0^7.0^:  C     ,' 


J.  />•  iV  1 . 


.3,.-  it: 


79. 

Tbe  sad  feature  of  it  all,  is  perhaps,  that  all  o-ur 
soldiers  did  not  return,  and  it  is  alviays  to  me  the  saddest  of  all 
the  features  of  this  war,  to  think  of  those  who  lie  silent  this 
night,  av«ay  over  yonder  in  foreign  lands.   It  seems  so  far  away 
when  we  think  of  our  Boys,  avsay  from  their  homes,  away  from  those 
vriio  loved  them,  and  in  turn  were  loved  "by  them*   I  take  it  that  we 
can  not  more  properly  close  this  meeting  than  by  standing  in  silence 
for  a  whi^e,  in  memory  of  our  sacred  dead  who  ^leep  so  far  aw&y,  in 
foreign  fields  vifeere  they  wait  the  call  of  angels. 

(All  rise.  Meeting  adjourned.) 


ov.-;' 


.r>    .;•.;;?•    ;';<;;v 


1  -^Ki'r 


.•;•.;  il    Ji/- 


b*:  -■i.^vr* 


■-•  -  ..-I 


.:v'vf%1 


I 


4':.  "v  ^ 


,:::Xix^v; 


I 


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